Lestrange Relationship

by StevenTLawson

Rose Potter made a friend, he's a bit crazy and tad dangerous, but that's what you get when you fall in love with the psychopathic son of a mad witch. Starts in Fourth Year with a lot of flashbacks to get everyone caught up. Will be Part One of a Series.

"Fucking Lestrange!" Rose Potter hissed, holding back a scream of frustration as she paced angrily in the fourth year girl's dorm room.

Hermione rolled her eyes and shut her book. "Honestly Rose, I never understand what you see in him, he's a total creep, a violent psychopath and he's rude to pretty much everyone in the castle."

"I know that Hermione," Rose whimpered as she flopped down on the mattress. "But he doesn't need to be so bloody annoying does he?"

"Annoying is better than scary," Hermione shrugged in response. "That boy has a few screws loose if they were ever tightened to begin with. And yet you defend him year after year. If I didn't know any better I would suspect you had a crush on him."

Rose flailed around for a moment at the accusation. "Hermione, I don't… you know that the boys are just… he's just like…"

"Methinks the lady doth protest too much," Hermione giggled, being that getting the chance to tease Rose about boys was such a rare occurrence she couldn't pass it up. "I know that it's a stereotype to go for the bad boys, but you could try to be less cliche."

"Oh really this is coming from Ms. Opposites Attract," Rose replied while childishly sticking out her tongue.

"Come on, I told you that was a maybe crush on Ron," Hermione whined that her friend was using that against her now. "He's our friend and when he's not being a total pig he's alright."

"Lestrange never acts like a pig," Rose pointed out, thinking that she needed to defend the subject of the conversation from being compared with Ronald Weasley of all people. "He's just…"

"Incredibly dangerous, mysterious and hates everyone equally." Hermione finished for Rose. "I really do not understand why Lestrange is someone you try to defend."

"I know, I just… I can't tell you why." Rose sighed, she hated keeping secrets from her best friend, best female friend that is. But her relationship with the son of Bellatrix Lestrange was one that had been cultivated in secret over years and it being secret is what made it work, it was how she survived every year.

And after everything Lestrange had done for her, she couldn't betray his trust, even to Hermione. But that only served to bring her thoughts back to the day she first met the enigma that was Stephen Lestrange.

---

"You are ill." The young boy said with finality, his tone the same as stating that two plus two equals four.

"M'not," Rose weakly responded to the voice that came from next to her. "Just need to sleep for a few hours, then Aunt Petunia will give me food in the morning. Then you'll be gone."

Rose didn't know why this hallucination seemed more real than the other ones she had when she was starved by her relatives, but like all the other times it would go away after she had food and rest, she just needed to make it through the night with the cramps and pains in her body.

Curling up into a small ball in the middle of her cupboard the young witch let out a tired whimper of discontent as her body cried out for sustenance. It was almost Monday and she had managed the last two days without food or water locked up after Dudley had come home on Friday complaining that the freak had gotten a better grade than he did. She was accused of cheating and then declared guilty all without her ever opening her mouth in defense that she had not done that.

Not that it would matter, it never did. But her Uncle had berated her then threw her in her tiny cupboard to learn the lesson on why freaks don't cheat. She knew that she was in for the long haul after not being let out to use the bathroom, crying herself to sleep after wetting herself had helped the first night.

The second day had been a hot one and her cupboard had no circulation so for hours and hours she laid on the thin mattress drenched in sweat. Then when the night rolled around she felt like she was freezing. Which was a result of the dehydration that her body was suffering from chills, the damp clothes also weren't helping. But after managing a few hours of sleep she made it to Sunday and she was grateful that her body seemed to have run out of sweat to make, not knowing how dangerous that really was, she was just happy to not feel wet and sticky.

"You'll die if no one does anything." The voice spoke softly again. "Do you wish to die?"

Seeing that it was just a figment of her imagination, she could tell it anything she wanted, it wouldn't make a difference. "I don't want to die."

"Then tell me what do you want?" the voice asked, sounding closer.

Maybe she thought that meant something, but with the headache she had been nursing all day it was hard to think deeply on anything. But saying whatever things that came to mind wasn't too hard, even if her dry throat made every word she uttered hurt. "I want to not hurt. I want food and water. I want friends, I want parents. I want... I want someone to love me." she cried, surprised that her body could still produce tears if the stinging of her eyes and wetness on her cheeks meant anything.

"I see," the voice responded before things got quiet again.

That passage of time meant very little to Rose in her cupboard, but she heard sounds again. 'I wonder if this voice will be different?'

"Drink this Potter, drink of this and sleep." The same voice from earlier said, suddenly appearing next to her head that she could barely move.

It had to have been her imagination but she felt something being pressed to her lips and she could have sworn she drank something before passing out.

Waking in the morning Rose was surprised that she wasn't in pain, the hunger she felt for the last two days was gone. Her mouth no longer felt drier than the desert, she actually had saliva in her mouth. The clothes she wore were the reverse, no longer smelling of sweat and urine, they felt soft and clean, as though the stiffness from her bodily fluids had been washed out. In fact looking around her tiny cupboard was free of dirt, stains and cobwebs altogether.

"What happened last night?" she quietly said to herself before the sudden opening of her cupboard door startled her back to the immediate issue of her relatives.

That was the first night she had ever met the Lestrange boy, although it would be much longer before she actually spoke to him and learned his name.

---

Hurrying to class Rose was so frustrated that she might be late all because Ron wanted to stuff his face until the last minute, then the stairs had to be unhelpful and send her all the way to the seventh floor before stopping on each floor down. She and Ron had just made it in before the door slammed shut and locked behind her. "Potter, Weasley," Mad-Eye shouted as he turned around to face the two last entrants. "Cutting it down to the wire I see."

"Sorry Professor," Rose panted out an apology, sliding into an open seat next to Hermione.

"At least you bothered to show up," Mad-Eye scoffed in annoyance. "Missing one student, probably too scared to be in a room with me."

Rose took a look around the room to see which missing student the professor could possibly be talking about when she realized that it was Lestrange, who had a habit of skipping classes at random times, where he might appear for some lessons throughout the day but just as easily might miss entire blocks. But whatever he was doing outside of classes she never learned and frankly Rose didn't want to know.

"Or…" Mad-Eye swept his gaze over his students. "He knew better than to show up, eyy Malfoy, Goyle, Crabbe, Nott. I know that your parents all ran together back in the day," he snarked, hobbling over to the children of Death Eaters, many of whom he had put away himself for whatever good it did.

The blonde Malfoy scion scoffed and rolled his eyes. "Don't think of yourself as special, my cousin does this to all the teachers. He never even showed up for a single one of Lockhart's classes." The pureblood ponce snickered that he was actually able to use his cousin's peculiarity for some humor at the expense of a man he didn't like.

There had been some grumbling from students at the mention of their second year defense professor, looking back they barely learned anything from the man and he had been pretty universally regarded as the worst professor in the castle, which was a pretty high bar to meet since he managed to beat out Binns, but the students had agreed that you could at least use the history class to catch a nap or work on other homework that you needed a little bit of extra time on. Lockhart was too pompous to allow anyone to not pay attention to him.

Mad-Eye's lips curled up in a frightening way before he marched back towards the center of the classroom where he had a spider in a jar. "Then again, the subject of today's lesson is something I doubt he needs my instruction on." Flipping the chalkboard around to show the words for the three Unforgivable Curses written on them.

Rose was incredibly shaken up after Professor Moody released the fourth year class. They had all seen the sickening demonstration that the former auror had provided them, only to then turn the imperius onto each of them. She wasn't the only student in the class who had a problem with the lesson, even the Slytherin's seemed a bit paler from his intense teaching style.

"That man is insane," Hermione held back a scream as the students walked down the hall. "The unforgivables, what's unforgivable is that he is allowed near children."

"Oh the lesson was that bad?" a voice from the shadows asked, stepping forward to reveal Lestrange who closed a book with no discernable cover.

With him coming out so suddenly Lestrange had managed to spook most of the students who were walking together. "Merlin cousin," Draco squawked before coughing. "And where were you? Too scared to show up to class huh?"

"Hardly cousin," Lestrange sighed. "I just didn't feel like I needed a refresher on spells I already know. If you'd like I could demonstrate for the rest of the good little witches and wizards though," sending a sadistic smile towards the blonde who nervously backed away from his approaching cousin. "How about it? Want to be my little assistant?"

Malfoy gulped loudly and hurried away from the hallway, making sure to not be within easy striking distance of the one student in the castle that he and pretty much everyone else was afraid of and for good reason.

---

"Hello cousin," Lestrange greeted as he casually entered the Slytherin common room. "I'm wounded that you have been avoiding me for so long. Does family mean nothing to you?" his mouth in a sick grin while he stalked across the floor.

"Hey, Gryffindors aren't allowed in here," Marcus Flint shouted at the first year who dared to enter the den of snakes.

But before he or anyone could do anything else, the smaller eleven year old had flung himself into the taller seventh year. A knife pressed dangerously into his jugular. "I'm sorry you worthless meat puppet, did I talk to you? Did I ever give an indication that I had come here to listen to you flap your lips and poison the air with your stupidity?" Hissing into the face of the terrified boy. "I should rip out your throat and gorge myself on your blood. Is that what you want? Do you wish to die tonight Flint?"

The taller boy slowly shook his head while his widened eyes kept locked on the very sharp knife resting on his neck. A few tense moments passed before Lestrange backed away and slid the knife out of view. "You're so fucking dead," an older Slytherin growled out.

Lestrange ticked his head at the threat. Jerking it to face the moron who spoke a popping sound could be heard from how quickly he turned his neck. "Oh really, really really really." Lestrange laughed and drew his wand. "And just what pray tell are you going to do about it?"

"There's more of us than you," the older student sneered.

Lestrange took a gaze around the room to see that many other students had their wands at the ready. "Just looks to me like I have more playthings. So I just have one question. Who's afraid of the dark?" He chuckled before every light in the common room went out with a hiss.

Screams of pain followed by flashing lights filled the air before the room brightened again, showing many Slytherins rolling on the floor in agony, clutching open wounds or just outright unconscious. All the while Lestrange was seen sitting calmly on a couch next to Draco Malfoy. "Now then cousin, before I was so rudely interrupted. It's so good to see you in the castle. Your father never did like sending me invites to any parties he threw, although I have been quite busy myself. So we'll have to make up for lost time and I can show you some of my favorite games. Let's start with a rousing game of Don't Get Stabbed." Lestrange smiled before whipping out the same knife he had threatened Flint with and jamming it into his cousin's thigh causing the young boy to scream out in pain and agony from the embedded weapon.

"Oh jeez, you're not very good at this game," Lestrange tutted while looking at his cousin who had fallen to the floor. "Don't worry we'll have all seven years together to have fun." Lestrange's voice grew higher in pitch to match his excitement. "Won't that be so incredible." Ignoring that Draco was screaming his head off Lestrange ripped the blade out of its resting place inside his cousin's body Lestrange gazed around the room and saw everyone flinch back when he met their eyes. "Oh I think I'm going to like it here. So many new playthings."

That had been a semi-regular occurrence for the snakes that Lestrange would, without fail, enter their common room and subject them to pain and suffering, well most of them anyway. There were quite a few Slytherins who never had so much as a hair on their head moved out of place by the deranged Gryffindor. Some would even say he was quite cordial with those people.

And others would wonder why Severus Snape was never involved in stopping Lestrange's rampage and tormenting an entire Hogwarts house. But that had been resolved when Lestrange had demonstrated in the dungeons by strapping the former Death Eater to a chair for his own amusement.

It just became known around Hogwarts that Lestrange did as he pleased and there was almost no point trying to punish him as he would rarely abide by anyone's authority.

That didn't mean the other teachers didn't try, but in many cases some students had better chances in reining him in. When Dumbledore had been asked to do something about the boy the elderly wizard had sighed and said that anymore discussions with the Lestrange boy would not yield any changes and sadly unless he was expelled there was little Albus could do and the old headmaster preferred to know that Lestrange was at Hogwarts rather than roaming free and possibly terrorizing the country.

---

Watching the retreating form of his cousin with glee, Lestrange slowly turned back to the other fourth years who just left their first class with the Death Eater in disguise. "A tip to help your brains feel less muggy after the imperius is to have a bit of salmon, I find that clears things up, also makes you feel less oily."

That he described so accurately what they were all feeling, most of the students rushed off towards the kitchen because despite his horrid reputation there were very few people who knew so much about the dark arts and one thing they had all learned over the years was that Lestrange never lied, maybe he would not tell you everything you needed to know and allowed you to come to your own conclusions, but a direct falsehood was not something that ever escaped his lips and any advice he gave was a precious commodity that students swore by.

That left only a few people who hadn't run off. Rose who wouldn't ever run from Lestrange and Hermione who had no inclination to leave those two alone together. "I see that you two have something you wish to discuss?"

Rose blushed because she realized that with everyone heading towards the kitchen she had subconsciously moved out of the way and now she was pressed up against a wall and Lestrange was a lot closer to her than he had been before almost as if he intentionally moved to box her in, to trap her with no way out of his clutches. "M-Moody's class was awful."

"I bet it was," Lestrange hummed. "I take it Longbottom had it especially bad then?"

"Yeah, how did you know?" Hermione questioned from the side watching as the pureblood lunatic loomed over her friend like a predator ready to pounce.

"Call it intuition," Lestrange chuckled, before slowly pulling away from Rose who finally let out the breath she was holding. "Well I should probably go have a talk with our new resident lunatic, you know, establish a pecking order."

Watching as he disappeared into the classroom, the door slamming shut and the loud sound of it locking Rose and Hermione shared a glance before hurrying to get away from that particular part of the castle. Rose might trust Lestrange with her life, as she had done on many occasions, but he had a tendency to cause destruction where he went.

"So, it was just nothing then, huh," Hermione hummed knowingly at Rose.

The Potter girl quickly bit back an insult. "Nothing at all."

"Yup, which is why you look ready to poke through your shirt," chuckling while glancing down at her friend's blouse where two little nubs were quite visible against the fabric.

Taking a look down to see what her brunette friend meant Rose gasped in shock before covering her chest. "Hermione." the girl whined.

"What?" the muggleborn witch shrugged. "It can get drafty in the castle, especially tucked away in those out of sight corners."

Rose growled in annoyance at being teased that her body had reacted to Lestrange in such an embarrassing way. "I can't believe you're my best friend."

"I can't believe you have a crush on Lestrange," Hermione responded. "I get that he's a good looking guy but there's plenty of nice looking guys in Hogwarts, what about Cedric Diggory? He's good looking and he won't skin you when you sleep." Suggesting the older Hufflepuff as someone else for her friend to get fixated on.

"One Cedric is dating Cho Chang who is way prettier than me. I'd have no chance and second, Cedric's not my type and third… shut up," Rose grumbled before storming away from Hermione who was struck with a fit of giggles.

"Rose and Stephen sitting in a tree," Hermione teased but did in fact shut up when they got closer to places in the castle where other people could hear. It was one thing to tease her in private but Hermione didn't want rumors to spread that Rose might actually be interested in the castle's most infamous student.

"So Crouch," Lestrange hummed curiously while taking a gander through the redecorated classroom. "What brings you to my neck of the woods?"

"You!? Avada-," the disguised Bartimus Crouch Jr. hissed before a knife slashed his wrist deeply, cutting the muscles that allowed him to hold the wand. The spell was quickly replaced by a shout of pain as the impostor retracted his hand to protect the new wound.

"Naughty Barty," Lestrange taunted while circling the man. "Did you really think you could sneak past me? That I wouldn't notice who you really were?"

"My disguise fooled Dumbledore," the dark wizard spat angrily.

"Dumbledore is a blind fool!" Lestrange shouted before casting a crippling spell on the one 'good' leg Moody had. "I spent years going in and out of Azkaban, I would recognize the patterns of any of you lot."

Grunting in pain, the Death Eater tried to track where the son of the Mad Witch was in the room. "You should be on our side, the side of the Dark Lord."

"Hah, that pathetic failure, 'the most feared Dark Lord', died to the efforts of a blood traitor, a mudblood and a baby witch. Not likely, he had his chance," Lestrange scoffed at the notion that he would follow that man.

"He is growing stronger, you insolent worm," Barty snarled.

"Cowering in fear more like it, leeching off everyone else no doubt." Lestrange shook his head. "To think my mother saw anything of value in him."

"He's the most powerful sorcerer in the world." Barty declared proud of his master.

"He feared a senile old man who was hiding behind ancient wards!" Lestrange countered. "He will die again to Rose Potter, because he is a blind fool, let alone what I would do if he dared to challenge me. Now tell me why you are here, what you have planned in my playground? Crucio!"

Try as he might to resist the torture curse Barty Crouch Jr. finally relented. "The tournament, the Dark Lord wants Potter to be entered into the tournament."

Releasing the spell from the man, Lestrange sat on the desk and tapped his wand on his leg in quiet contemplation. "I see, well then." Lestrange said as he stood up. "Once you have done that, I expect you to leave the school. I will not tolerate the presence of another Death Eater. I had to share the last three years with Severus and Peter, I quite like having only one other person to keep tabs on rather than two."

"I cannot abandon my post," Barty Crouch pleaded.

"Too bad, you will do as I say and then you will crawl back to your master to inform him of how much I allowed you to do rather than put an end to your scheme now. He will understand that I am being quite generous to even give him that much," Lestrange said while kneeling down and lifting the dark wizard's chin. "After that he'll have to modify his plans because if I catch you still in this castle after Potter's been entered, I will string you up in the great hall and peel strips of flesh off your body until your polyjuice wears off and then we'll see what happens to what's underneath." Patting the man's cheek Lestrange casually strode to the door and opened it with a flick of his wrist. On the other side stood Poppy Pomfrey who had been waiting nervously after she had been informed of the likely confrontation brewing in the castle.

"Just some light dueling madam, he wanted to compare his skills with the new generation of dark wizards," Lestrange bowed dramatically for the witch who bustled past him to get to her patient. "Seems his age is catching up to him though." Lestrange let out an evil cackle as he walked away from the Dark Arts classroom in search of his next point of amusement.

To the surprise of the students both Professor Moody and Lestrange appeared for dinner that night, the castle having heard there had been a fight between the two had assumed there would be at least one dead body to the point that bets had been placed on the outcome. "No freaking way!" Fred announced seeing his terrifying housemate casually come into the Great Hall with Moody already seated at the head table. "Unbelievable, George, who had the bet on neither being dead?" Quickly turning to his twin for the answer from the betting book.

The other identical redhead began flipping through the pages. "Only one person bet that," looking up from the book of numbers and down the table at the redheaded young lady who had won the pot. "Rose come on, you had to have some inside information. How the bloody hell did you know they'd both make it?"

The winner who now had the entire staff and student attention nervously swallowed her food so that she could give the hall an answer "Just didn't think he'd kill anyone this early in the year, plus, I thought Stephen might actually enjoy having someone who knew a lot about the Dark Arts in the castle to play with."

Lestrange paused for a moment in the pathway between tables before barking out a laugh. "Oh Potter certainly has me all figured out." sending a grin up to the head table. "I like to get some mileage out of my toys before I break them."

"You little," Barty Crouch under his disguise stood up before reluctantly sitting down when considered that a protracted battle in the Great Hall wouldn't get him anything even with the teachers more than likely on his side, Lestrange was just as crazy and cunning as his mother so it wouldn't surprise him if the young wizard had something up his sleeve to expose him. "Thank you for volunteering to be my assistant in all my lessons from here on out boy."

"Oh ho," Lestrange chuckled. "Does this old man think he has wisdom to impart, well I would be glad to smack you around to teach these kiddies a real lesson."

"Stop it," Albus grumbled from his chair. "Honestly."

"Sorry Headmaster," Lestrange chuckled before taking a seat at a random table. "I'll find other ways to entertain myself." sweeping his gaze around to see the flinches from his schoolmates. It always put a smile on his face to know that almost everyone in the castle was terrified of him.

Rose heaved a sighed and picked at her food knowing that Lestrange was just getting his kicks in. It just reminded her that Lestrange was someone who had an odd sense of humor but prided himself on maintaining control of a situation. He wouldn't kill someone potentially useful like Mad-Eye on a whim. But she had seen him maim, torture and kill others before.

---

"Aaah, Uncle Vernon stop you're… hurting me, please," thirteen-year-old Rose Potter begged with tears stinging her eyes as she tried to fight off her drunken uncle. The young witch opened her mouth to scream for help, in the vain hopes that the neighbors would hear her just this once, when her uncle let out a pained cry and rolled away from her, desperately clawing at his back to find the source of the pain. Only to have a foot plant itself firmly in his ass sending him face first into the wall.

"I thought I told you fat man, you don't touch what isn't yours," Lestrange said in a low rumble while he pressed down on the injured man and grabbed the knife he had stuck in his back, then he began to twist and turn the handle, digging it deeper into his fatty tissue and muscles. A feral grin on his face as her uncle screamed in agony. "Rose, if you want to get out of here, gather your belongings, head to the curb and stick out your wand, the Knight Bus will arrive shortly after, it can take you anywhere you want it to. I suggest somewhere safe for the time being."

"But Stephen," Rose whimpered even as she hurried to wrench open the door to her old bedroom, the cupboard under the stairs, quickly gathering her trunk and anything else that was hers.

"No buts Potter," Lestrange cut off the young witch as he plunged the knife into Vernon's neck, a spray of blood coating the wall causing Rose to close her eyes to not see her uncle be murdered in front of her, even though the choked gargles he made still reached her ears. "We'll meet at our usual time, three days after you get your supplies with your friends."

With that said Rose hurried up the stairs to her room to gather her most valuable possessions and to release Hedwig when she heard Lestrange call for his house elf Kreacher, a quite deranged elf who seemed perfectly suited for assisting it's even more insane master.

The commotion had finally drawn the attention of Petunia who gasped seeing the mess down in the foyer. She was opening her mouth to scream when the same blade that had taken her husband's life was thrown into her skull, piercing through the bone and killing her instantly. Rose tried not to react to seeing her aunt's corpse hit the wall before slumping to the floor as she stepped over the body to head towards the door only to see that in the living room Dudley had been strangled with an electrical cord. Her entire family, if they could be called that had just been eradicated.

The warm August night air hit her skin as she ran to the curb and did as Lestrange told her too. Holding back a sob even as tears stung her cheeks, she managed to murmur out to Stan that she wanted to go to the Leaky Cauldron. Tom the Bartender had taken one look at the distressed witch who entered his bar and set her up in a private room.

As soon as her head hit the pillow she was out cold for the night and despite the insistence of the Minister of Magic, Tom had not budged on letting anyone going up and disturbing her. But when she awoke she had been told that her relatives had all been brutally murdered. That much she knew, but what she didn't know was who they were blaming it on, it seemed that some mass murderer had escaped from Azkaban and it was presumed that he was coming after her. She would need to ask Lestrange what that was about when she saw him next.

When the Minister had asked Rose why she had run away from home only to turn up at the Leaky Cauldron in the middle of the night, Rose hadn't been able to nor wanted to tell the man that her uncle had gotten drunk and kept trying to touch her. Seemingly getting the clue to not pry further Cornelius Fudge just advised that the young witch not spend too much time outside of the Alley and to not go anywhere with someone she did not know until they could set up some security at the Grangers.

But after the man left Rose was finally able to take in the fact that she was free of the Dursleys and their abuse. She had been saved once again by her secret protector, a friend who would kill for her sake.

---

"Earth to Rose," Hermione said, getting her friend's attention again from wherever her mind had wandered off to. "We need to head to the lawn, the other schools will be arriving soon."

Rose nodded, lately she had been having dreams, some of them involved Voldemort, and those always left her feeling nauseous. But in others which were becoming more frequent Lestrange was a main component, some were just memories of her adventures and how he helped her survive them but others were much more intimate where clothes were optional.

Standing on the lawn she was able to see that Lestrange was in attendance, in his usual standoffish manner of sitting up on the clock tower and looking down at the students. To any other student who noticed him which might have been a few as he wasn't really trying to hide himself, they would assume he was just being creepy, but for Rose it told her something deeper, that the young man had trouble finding connections with others, that he would choose to remain distant and seem threatening rather than allow anyone to get close and potentially hurt him. She wished more for her friend than her being his only connection to others, but she didn't know how to bring it up with other people because everyone had seemed to already make up their minds about him from the first time they had met him.

McGonagall fumbled over the next name on the list of first years to have sorted. "Le-Lestrange Stephen," she said, raising her gaze to the remaining eleven-year-olds. An audible gasp could be hurt from many students. The old witch turned to face the head table and asked with her features if anyone had even known of the boy's existence.

With the practiced swagger of an apex predator a young boy seemed to glide across the stone floor, it would have looked completely silly to an outsider which is probably why many muggleborns chuckled, either because of the wizard's name being so close to that of a fictional comic book sorcerer or that the way he moved was so unnatural. But nonetheless the boy took the same seat as hundreds had before him, letting the old witch put the Sorting Hat upon his brow and silence gripped the hall.

Many had likely expected that the son of the infamous witch would have been sent to the den of snakes before he had even sat down with the hat not even needing to touch to know where he belonged but for some reason minutes would pass by before the Hat opened its mouth and shocked the hall with its declaration.

"GRYFFINDOR"

And just like that the balance had shifted, preconceptions were shattered, the students and teachers would forever question the decision to send someone so clearly unsuited to one house into it.

There was no applause for the young wizard as he found a spot at the table among his housemates who had moved away from him and the muggleborn students who did not move were pulled away by their friends, creating a small island of isolation around the latest arrival.

---

"That's Viktor Krum," Ron squealed in delight at seeing the professional seeker walk past him in line with the rest of his school's delegation. "Viktor Krum is here."

"Yeah Ron," Rose muttered, she recalled the flier from seeing his match at the Quidditch World Cup over the summer. "Maybe you'll be able to get his autograph if you ask him like everyone else will?'

"You really think so?" Ron asked, completely ignoring that Rose was being sarcastic. She had doubted that the athlete enjoyed people coming up to him all the time for things just as she hated when first years would go out of their way to find her and take pictures and ask about the scar.

Hermione rolled her eyes at how oblivious the redhead could be. "Oh sure, I bet if you find him right away you'll be the first in the castle to get him to sign your poster, you did bring it down with you right?"

Ron gasped in horror that he didn't have anything for the quidditch player to sign that he barreled through the other Hogwarts students to race back up to the Gryffindor dorms to find something appropriate to be autographed.

"Sometimes I get why Lestrange chooses to torment him," Hermione sighed in disappointment that her friend had not been able to tell when she was being genuine or not.

"I know, but at least the twins and him managed to negotiate a ceasefire," Rose snickered at how bad things had gotten in the castle during the Prank War of '91. Chaos had been the only thing the castle knew for three whole weeks as things kept escalating between the two sides, to the point that students were skipping classes all together just to avoid getting caught in the crossfire.

The large carriage that looked as though it had been ripped straight out of Cinderella touched down on the lawn, the French students from Beauxbatons had arrived. Tall, shapely French witches in much more form fitting uniforms pranced past the Hogwarts students. That alone would have gotten them enough attention but one girl in particular had more than the lion's share of eyes on her. It was almost as if the girl was specifically designed by some higher power to make every other woman feel inadequate. Each and every aspect of this girl was like perfection given form, her long blonde hair was vibrant and not a single strand was out of place. Every step was a graceful display that moved her entire body as though it were a dance. The way her hips swayed, the skin free of blemishes and imperfections, long legs that went on for days. The slight shifting of her tight blouse showed off her generous bust; full, pouty lips, cheeks with just the right amount of rosy tint to them and gorgeous icy blue eyes.

"I hate her," Rose grumbled seeing how far too many people had their eyes on this young woman, more specifically her ass when she passed them by.

After that the students moved inside for the welcoming feast, movement up above letting Rose know that Lestrange had taken off.

"I wonder where he's going this time?" Rose wondered because the wizard had not gone the way one would when coming down from the clock tower to get to the Great Hall. She barely had an inkling to the methods of his madness even on the rare occasion she had found him in the castle.

---

"Stephen?" second year Rose called out to the darkened room. She had been wanting to find him ever since the dueling club but he'd made himself scarce over the last few weeks. "Please it's me Rose, are you in here?"

She heard some shuffling from around a few stacked desks and nervously took a peak only to see her friend lying against the wall tending to bleeding wounds. "Stephen!" she cried out seeing the state the wizard was in.

"Is fine," Lestrange grunted as he ran his wand in a circular pattern around a deep gash in his side, the blood flowing backwards into the open cut before being sealed.

"It's not fine, oh my gosh, we need to get you to Pomfrey," Rose decided while tugging on her friend who resisted.

"No, can't." Stephen hissed in pain at the forced movements. "They can't know how hurt I really was."

Rose let go of her friend's hand. "Is this about your stupid pride, that you don't want people to think you are weak!"

"Yes." Lestrange answered. "They have to believe that I was less hurt than I really was, if they know that in greater numbers they could actually pose a threat or even stop me, then they wouldn't fear me and that's my best tool to get information. Information might I add, that I use to keep you alive."

"What could be so important that you had to get yourself half-killed over to learn?" Rose placed her hands on her hips waiting for an answer that she would just dismiss as not important enough.

Lestrange grunted in pain as he wrapped magical bandages on a burn he received to his pectoral. "No one in Slytherin is involved in the petrifications, I've already managed to rule out Ravenclaw and Hufflepuff as well. That only leaves one option."

"It's a Gryff doing it." Rose gasped in realization of the implications that Lestrange had uncovered.

"Exactly, I had a hell of a time getting what I needed and most of the snakes are going to be nursing wounds for weeks. But what happens in the common room stays in the common room at least." Lestrange chuckled. "Now I need to get back out there and be seen by the students. They have to think that I'm untouchable, if they realized that a stiff breeze could knock me over then I lose a lot of that fear and next time they might not tell me anything when I need them too."

"You didn't have to do this, you know, Hermione had a plan to use polyjuice to sneak into the Slytherin dorm and question Malfoy. He was our prime suspect."

"Not sure why, my cousin's a loudmouth idiot, he wouldn't have kept this a secret until this year, he would have been parading around long before he even came to Hogwarts last year that he was Heir of Slytherin," Lestrange chuckled while limping to the door. "And I knew Granger's plan, it could have ended with you stuck in the Slytherin Common room with no way out, they would never have let you leave if they found you there. It was safer for me to go than for you two to end up in a tight spot."

Rose knew that made sense, a polyjuice only lasts for one hour and had she and Hermione been discovered then a swift death would be a mercy to what she heard the older slytherins do to young girls. "At least let me help you," Rose offered a hand in the hopes he would let her help him walk around.

"Careful my little flower," Lestrange chuckled gutturally. "If you keep offering me your hand, I might just keep it."

It took Rose a few seconds to catch onto the meaning behind his words but when she did her face was a vibrant shade of red. He left her standing stunned in the disused classroom going on his own path to get to the high traffic areas to put in his appearance for the rest of the students who at this point held a deep hatred and distrust for him. It was a dangerous gambit, because if they even saw for a moment that he was weak, they would pounce and take him down as a collective.

---

"So that's the Goblet of Fire," Rose said after Hagrid brought in the magical artifact that would be handling the choosing of the champions.

Ron and Hermione were sitting alongside her while they watched Dumbledore cast some spell neither had ever seen before. Then listened as he described that it was an age line to prevent those too young from entering the tournament.

"How lame," Ron grumbled and kicked a chair when they got back to the common room. "What's the point of having this tournament if we aren't allowed to enter. What if I wanted to win the whole thing and have eternal fame and glory?" Whining that his chance was already gone before it began.

"I think it's for the best, it's supposed to be really dangerous," Hermione answered while she opened a book, which conveniently held the history of the tournament. "It says here that it had been discontinued due to so many tournaments ending in a tie with no winner because everyone died."

"Bah," Ron scoffed. "It can't be that bad."

"You would do well to listen to her Weasly," Lestrange said from where he sat by the fireplace. "You lack the needed skills to win against older and better equipped students, let alone the dangers you would face in the tournament."

Being so directly challenged and by the one person in the castle he hated as much as Malfoy, Ron shot out of his seat and began fumbling around his robes to draw his wand.

This had not been the first time Ron and Lestrange had clashed, in fact the other lions had simply lost track given the years, not that it mattered it always ended the same way. "Honestly, that you do this at least once a year is proof enough that you are inadequate," Lestrange said nonchalantly while flicking his wrist to put his own wand in his palm and waiting to show some sense of fairness to the redhead who refused to learn from his mistakes. "You are good at chess that requires strategy, and yet… protego," Lestrange flatly said to block the spell flung at him. "Calvorio, you never seem to be able to come up with a battle plan when facing a much greater foe." Lestrange lazily said before stowing his wand while he waited for Ron to react to what he had done.

A shower of red strands of hair quickly alerted Ron to the effect of the spell he didn't block or dodge, reaching up he felt his bald head and began to panic, running over to find a mirror even as other students laughed at the sight. He let out a girlish scream patting his head. "He scalped me."

"No I didn't, that's just the hair loss curse, if I scalped you there would be a lot more blood," Lestrange commented from his spot by the fire. "It's an easy fix if you brew up a Manegro potion," he said when he saw that Rose was looking at him with displeasure, so he had to at least give the git some hope that it wasn't permanent, if only to put a smile back on her face. Hearing that there was a solution the former ginger took off running to find Madam Pomfrey, not knowing that the potion was non-standard so he would be waiting for a while unless he made it himself or got someone else to do it for him. But that wouldn't stop him from further stirring the cauldron for his amusement.

"Or for some light reading, this rare... first edition copy of Miranda Goshawk's Book of Spells has a hair regrowing charm in it along with some other spells that had fallen out of style," waving the book he had pulled out of his robes before letting it fall to the floor. "Oops, so clumsy of me." He chuckled while waiting to see how long it would take Hermione to come over and rescue the book from him and it seemed many others were as well.

The brunette witch let out an indignant whine trying not to seem too eager to get her hands on the book, but she didn't want to just run over like she had the last few times Lestrange had done this. It made her feel like she was some sort of pet running for fallen table scraps but each book was a rare copy that either Hogwarts kept in the restricted section or was so hard to find that they would be completely out of her price range that she would never get another chance. Finally she felt her thirst for knowledge outweigh her dignity and she scurried over, scooping up the book and returning to the seat to begin reading.

"You know Lestrange," Potter smirked, deciding that this was a decent enough time to tease her friend in public. "If you really wanted to make friends, there are easier ways to go about it."

"And miss out on all the opportunities to see Granger debase herself in front of me, I think not. That fuels a number of sordid fantasies of mine, I could never deprive myself of that," Lestrange grinned at the vivacious redhead, rising to the challenge.

Rose stuck her tongue out at the wizard. "I guess it makes sense, we are just playthings for you after all."

"Oh Potter, if you wanted some playtime, you only needed to ask," Lestrange growled out. "You, me, some chains and whips. We can play a fun little game of Prisoner and Torturer."

"Hah, you must be dreaming," Rose snorted even if the idea did appeal to her, although it would be a long time before she would be letting Lestrange have his wicked ways with her. "But I wouldn't mind chaining you up and leaving you in some deep dark hole to rot."

"Speaking of Azkaban," changing the subject to something less sexually charged. "I have learned that Sirius Black was the second person to escape the prison and I know how they did it."

This declaration was shocking for the other Gryffindors who had been watching the back and forth between the Golden Girl and the Black Sheep. For the last few years Rose Potter seemed about the only one who had any measure of control over Lestrange for some reason, her and Neville Longbottom. He was always exempted from any torment by the son of the mad witch.

"What? Who? How? When? Why?" Was the litany of questions thrown his way by other students eager to know what he did.

"Now where's the fun in telling you that now?" Lestrange chuckled from the fun of dangling that juicy gossip in front of such eager to bite people. "I will say it was a Death Eater though."

Knowing that by now Barty Crouch Jr. had to have tampered with the cup and after Rose's name came out the man would vacate the castle like he had been warned to do. So setting the castle on the edge to try to figure things out would only really serve as extra incentive to get the hell out of his territory.

"Well I am exhausted. I don't know about you all, but after the day I've had scheming, plotting, committing then covering up crimes, I think I'm ready to turn in." Giving the fakest yawn he could to the groans of dismay from his housemates who had been deciding what they could do to pry that information from him. Stopping at the stairs that led to the boy's dorm, Lestrange turned back. "Hey Potter, just so you know, I'll be dreaming of you tonight." Winking at the girl who blushed heavily at the statement she knew was one hundred percent true.

"Honestly, it's like he terrorizes us but flirts with you," Katie Bell sighed at her team seeker who had watched over the years the various disjointed relationships her housemates built with each other. "You best be careful a guy like that probably doesn't take no for an answer."

Rose gulped nervously, not because she was worried Lestrange would be like that but because she knew he wasn't. That she knew he would wait for her, and that she wasn't sure she wanted to wait much longer to let him have her, she had learned long ago that she was his.

---

Lestrange had a strange possessiveness to him that he rarely showed, Rose noticed. He had told her that she would have to act as though she didn't know him, that they had never met, never spoken a word to each other. Even more so that they didn't like each other.

She had not one clue as to why though. "But Stephen, you're my friend, my best friend of all. Why do I have to pretend that we don't know each other?" Tears in her eyes that her first friend was abandoning her after all these years.

"Because I am a bad person, I come from a bad family, if people knew that we had a connection they would likely keep us apart for your safety, they would worry that I've done something to you."

"But why, you've done nothing to me," Rose countered. "You've protected me and kept me safe and sane. You're the most amazing person I know."

"But that's where you are wrong my sweet," Lestrange sighed, gently placing a finger on her soft lips, before moving to caress her cheek, the girl responding with a sigh and leaning into the touch. "I did something horrible to you. I gave you hope, I have interfered with the plans of powerful people just so that you did not have to suffer, so that you would not have to be alone and unloved. If they learn of that they will stop at nothing to undo it."

Rose reeled back in surprise at the reason why her friend was requesting she distance herself from him. "Who, who would want to do such a thing?"

"The person who put you with the Dursleys, who never checked on you, who will go out of his way to ensure your fate brings about the outcome he believes to be necessary. I doubt it was done with evil intent, but the road to hell is paved with good intentions and built upon the bodies of those sacrificed for it. I do not wish to see the same happen to you."

She hated that she was afraid, afraid that her friend was right, afraid that there were people out there that wanted to see her suffer. So she savored the fleeting time she had with him and leaned into his body. "Fine, but until then I want all the hugs you can muster."

Lestrange sighed and wrapped his arms around the girl comfortingly as he had done in the past when she needed something to help ground her to reality, that things were real. He really should have seen it coming that he would be wrapped around her finger like that, he was always a sucker for a pretty face.

---

October thirty-first, the day Rose Potter hated more than any. Everything bad in her life seemed to happen on this day, so of course she was on edge. There wasn't much her friends could really do to cheer her up but they still tried. Meaning they had gotten good seats to watch the students enter the tournament and make guesses along with everyone else as to who would be chosen.

"No way Krum doesn't get it, he's too amazing not to be in the tournament," Ron blabbed seeing the professional athlete pass by with his headmaster. "Oh Merlin, he's looking my way."

Rose, who had been taught to actually track where people were looking only to know if someone was watching you or just the area in general, could tell that the object that held his gaze was in fact her female friend to her left, not that Hermione could tell. "Looks like Cedric is making a go of it." Noticing the older Hufflepuff putting in his own name.

"Here come the wonder twins," Hermione nodded towards Fred and George who came into the fanfare of other Gryffindors cheering them on. The two holding aloft potions. "It won't work." the witch commented on the expected outcome.

"Think you figured it out huh?" Rose hummed curiously.

"If not, I did and she's right." Lestrange said, his sudden appearance with the crowd startling everyone. "Registrar?"

Hermione nodded with a smile, despite his rough exterior, Lestrange had never belittled her intelligence. He had even admitted that she was the most intelligent witch he'd ever met, but that compliment was undercut by him adding on that she had no idea how to properly use that brilliant mind of hers. "Exactly, their bodies will say they are old enough but since Dumbledore tied the ageline to the Hogwarts records, no Hogwarts student could get over it. He obviously didn't have to worry about the visiting students as they would have only brought of age students anyway, so he just had to contend with our own. Thus unless you tampered with the school's ledger then you won't beat his age line."

"Five points to Gryffindor Ms. Granger, now I want three feet of parchment on the modern applications of age lines," Rose faked a McGonagal voice earning a chuckle from her best friends.

Lestrange looked at the brunette before ruffling her hair, earning him a squawk of annoyance. "Seems that she already began writing notes on age lines after seeing Albus cast the spell."

"It was only for personal curiosity, I don't actually expect there to be homework assigned on it," Hermione blushed and groaned that she was getting picked on by both of them.

The twins downed their tonics dramatically before hopping over the line.

"Ha," Ron cheered and stuck out his tongue before fumbling to keep his hat on so everyone in the castle didn't see that he was still bald. "Looks like you were wrong."

"Nope," Lestrange grinned. "Five," he said aloud, drawing attention. "Four," counting down. The students who were watching him quickly turned back to the twins and as soon as he hit one the spell kicked into action sending the twins shooting across the floor with beards that matched the headmaster and long gray hair to compliment it.

Of course the Wealsey duo took it in stride and laughed it off.

In the fun environment many missed that some of the Beauxbaton students had entered their own names. But plenty of reactions were had when the french veela Fleur stepped up.

"It's more sad than anything that they can't resist the allure," Lestrange sighed as most of the male students were turned into drooling messes.

"And I guess you're completely immune then huh?" Rose teased.

"Not at all, her allure is making me want to go down there and do unspeakable things to her, I just have something called self control." Lestrange admitted. However this was enough to shock Rose who stood up in anger and stormed off. "I probably could have phrased that better."

"You think," Hermione rolled her eyes.

"I'll just get her a gift to make her forget she was mad," Lestrange shrugged.

"Please like you know what she wants," Hermione laughed at the notion that Lestrange could fix her friend's mood. As far as she knew the only time they spent together was in class or when he was harassing the school, he didn't know the first thing about Rose Potter.

"Oh look here I found a long lost journal of Salazar Slytherin that details first hand accounts of the early days before the founding of Hogwarts that has never been seen in over a thousand years." Holding up the book that he had been seen reading the last few days. The brunette's eyes widening in shock that he possessed such an important piece of history, in fact other people who were nearby including the teachers were staring at the leather tome.

Reeling back his arm he pitched the book across the room. "Fetch Granger." The brunette taking off after to save the book from any further harm. "Don't worry you gits, it's a geminio copy, I have extra," stating to the room who were aghast that he'd treat a rare and irreplaceable book so roughly.

"The original is stashed somewhere safe, along with a few other things that I plan to use as bargaining chips." Laughing loudly at the displeasure displayed by other students and teachers in the hall that he would so easily withhold these potentially history changing items from everyone else.

"Rose," Lestrange called out to the young woman after he found her, she was in a place hidden from other people, but not to him. "Rose," he repeated before sitting down next to her. "I'm sorry. I shouldn't have said that the veela made me all hot and bothered."

"You're a stupid dumb, dummy," Rose hissed but nonetheless leaned into Lestrange's side.

"For what it's worth, you do the same to me," he admitted. "You are just as beautiful as she is."

"No I'm not, I'm practically plain." Rose muttered darkly.

"Rose, my sweet flower, there is nothing plain about you." Lestrange said firmly, turning her head to face him, being so close she could feel his breath on her lips.

The lack of space between them made Rose want to lean in and close the distance, to lock her lips onto his own and claim him as he had done to her heart. But she was still mad and she wanted to get in as many jabs as she could. "You know in French fleur means flower."

Lestrange reached up and ran his fingers through Rose's long red hair, the feeling of his nails on her scalp made her sigh and lean into the long desired touch. A purr escaped her lips that this was the most intimacy he had been able to show her in the last few months because of how busy she had been.

"That may be, but you are my flower. I have watched you bloom from a sweet little bud into the beautiful woman before me. She does not have that. Only you do. You have a strength unmatched by others in this castle. I may want to feel her under me, but I desire you, I lust for you, after all these years the yearning I feel burns hotter than the sun."

"Then come out to everyone, let's go public with our relationship. I'm tired of hiding it away, not being able to be with my best friend who completes me. The only person who has pulled me from the deepest pits of despair, the man who looked into my soul, saw all the scars and damage and pulled me in. I love you Lestrange," Rose confessed finally after all these years together.

"Is that what you want then?" Lestrange whispered as he leaned into the redheaded maiden, pressing her body into his. "For the games to end."

"Yes, please," Rose pleaded.

Brushing his lips onto hers so lightly it was almost a phantom feeling, this was enough to cause the witch to melt into the embrace . "Then we shall soon. This year there is much in play, you are going to be entered into the tournament. There are ways to get you out but the officials won't bring them up and Albus will not proclaim his right as your interim guardian to stop it either."

"Why didn't you stop it?" Rose asked with a heavy sigh, hating that Lestrange turned this from pleasure to business.

"Because had I done so the next plan would likely be to outright kidnap you from the castle or force you to come to them," Lestrange confessed. "They would become too unpredictable, this way we force them to mostly stick to their original plan."

"This plan sucks." Rose pouted and folded her arms.

"It's Halloween baby, it's always going to suck, at least until we get rid of Tommy Boy," Lestrange shrugged. "But no matter what your other friends do, I'll be here for you."

---

"Why are you my friend?" Nine year old Rose Potter asked the young boy who sat in a tree branch out of sight of her aunt's watchful eye while she weeded the flower bed for the upcoming competition.

"Because my little bud, you wanted one," Lestrange said simply.

"But how did you even know to find me?" Rose questioned her friend further. She had seen him come by somewhat frequently and always on the days that the Dursely's were especially cruel to her. He came by with strange food and drinks for her that he said would try to make her healthy again, but he said some of the damage was already done. It wasn't pleasant to hear that her relatives had permanently stunted her. She knew that was a big deal because the boy would bring her books for her to read, books that her relatives never took away from her even when they were in plain view in her cupboard. But he said it was very important that she had a sharp mind, which could be just as deadly as a sharp blade.

"I knew because I was looking for you. You are a very important young lady," Stephen answered.

"Why? I'm just a freak- ow," Rose rubbed her head from the pain of a pinecone hitting her.

"What did I say about that word Rose?" Stephen glared.

"That I'm not a freak," Rose repeated the mantra that her friend had been trying to instill in her. "I am a witch, I am strong, I am beautiful and I am loved."

"Exactly, next time I'll find something a bit harder than a pinecone," he warned before resuming his relaxation on the branch.

"Thank you Stephen, for being my friend," Rose said with a smile. "My only friend and not abandoning me."

"Rose, I'll never leave your side." Lestrange promised.

---

That night Rose sat at the Gryffindor table, knowing what was coming both made it easier but also worse at the same time, knowing that there was no stopping it sucked so much. Only that her best friend had promised to give her the one present she wanted for the last three years made it worthwhile.

After the feast concluded the goblet was ignited and in short order the Tri-Wizard champions were chosen. All four of them.

Rose looked around the room as the adults argued, and just like Lestrange had said, none of the tournament officials spoke up about the rules that would prohibit her, that could disqualify her now before anything began, nor did her own headmaster and current interim guardian for her, due to the Wizengamot never being able to reach a conclusion on where she should go, speak up to have her removed.

So off she was sent after being glared at by the other champions, insulted and branded a liar and a cheat all before she had even done anything. Then of course she remembered why she hated that her best friend was right all the time.

"I didn't enter my name Ron, get that through your thick skull!" Rose screamed in the boy's face who was pestering the moment she came up to the dorm for her to tell him how she did it.

"Fine, be a selfish glory hogging bitch," Ron snarled. "After everything I do for you, you just have to steal the spotlight. Everything has to be about Rose Potter, The-Girl-Who-Lived, worried that she might not be the biggest celebrity in the castle and she couldn't possibly let anyone else have an easy shot at fame or glory. No wonder she only managed to make two friends in the castle, everyone could see who she really was the whole time," He stomped away grumbling about not being friends anymore.

That jab about friends had really struck her deeply and it took all her dignity to not cry in front of the rest of the house. Hurrying up to the girls dorm where she was followed in by Hermione.

The brunette watched as her friend curled up in her bed. "He'll come around you know. He just gets really jealous."

"I know but, why? You'd think after everything we've been through that he would know I'd never do anything like this." Rose sucked in a breath trying not to sob, but the way Ron spoke to her hit at all of her insecurities.

"He should, but…" Hermione slumped unsure of what to say to her friend.

"I just want to go to sleep Hermione." Rose mumbled pulling the covers over herself to shut out the rest of the world.

"Barty," Lestrange called out from his spot where he was relaxing when he saw Mad-Eye enter his quarters. "I do hope you remember the next step in your plan, I would hate to have to repeat it to you again. Oh wait, that's a lie I would love nothing more than to torture you for hours and hours tonight."

"Damnable child, I should kill you, I could kill you, just say you put Potter in the tournament and you tried to stop me from exposing you and my cover is secure for the rest of the year. The dumb bitch will eagerly do what I instruct her to so that she can survive, each task only making her trust me more and more." Barty hissed as his body shifted back to its natural state. "It would make my master's plan that much easier."

"It would, wouldn't it," Lestrange hummed as he thought about how much easier things would be for the dark wizard if he went through with that strategy. "I could see how you would entertain that idea. It does sound like a good plan after all."

"A great plan, Avada-," Barty Crouch started to cast before his arm fell to the ground clutching his wand.

"Honestly, I never understood that fascination with the killing curse, too many syllables," Lestrange tutted. "Lacero," flicking his wand to divest his target of a leg. "That is so much faster to get off. Now I'm sure you came back here for a reason," seeing that the escaped prisoner's eyes flickered to the trunk momentarily. "Ahh so that is where you have been keeping the real Alastor, makes sense that you would need him on hand for the potion."

"He can identify me," Barty Jr. hissed before a reductor flew past his head and destroyed the bed.

"Not my problem, I have left you alive, per the agreement, pray that I do not alter it," warning the man who begrudgingly grabbed his wand and limped out of the room. Once the door had been shut and there was no hint that the disarmed man would try a last ditch spell to try and eliminate him, Lestrange turned back to the trunk. Fiddling with the intricate lock before letting out a growl and blasting the lid off Lestrange looked into the expanded space to see a man held captive down in a deep empty pit. "Happy birthday to me."

---

"And he just let you out?" Albus questioned his friend who was laid up in the hospital wing. After Lestrange brought him in, Poppy had alerted the headmaster and the other heads of houses to the problem. "And he didn't say anything else?"

"Course he did, but he was just making fun of me for getting captured by some punk who got locked away at nineteen and managed to get the drop on me. The prick made sure I knew that someone who'd been stuck under the imperius for the last decade was able to take me out." Alastor grumbled that of all people, he had to have been rescued by Lestrange's brat. "Little bastard."

"Lestrange was aware as to the identity of the man who impersonated you, likely since he set foot in the castle," Albus realized. "Yet he did nothing to help you."

"Do you think he's played any part in what's going on? Getting the Potter girl closer to the Dark Lord?" Severus questioned because he had a hatred of the young wizard ever since he began to terrorize his house, had he been less blinded by his feelings he would have noticed that his students were far more subdued than ever before. Because they had someone else in the castle to fear. "He's a menace and we've only kept him in the castle to keep an eye on him and yet he was still able to act without our knowledge. It's too dangerous to let him stay around."

"It could be more dangerous to cut him loose now," Minerva countered the potion master's suggestion. Their initial positions regarding Lestrange over the years having flipped with this new information. She had wanted him gone many times, but Snape wanted to keep track of Bellatrix's son. "If he leaves that might be what he wants and he'll be in the wind before anyone can do anything to hold him accountable."

"Whatever we do though, we must do quickly," Albus said with resignation. He hated direct confrontation but Lestrange had been pushing boundaries ever since he arrived in the castle, disrupting everything he had done to try and suppress pure blood beliefs and prevent students from turning dark and ensuring that Rose Potter would be ready to face her destiny decided before her birth. There had been hiccups along the way but everything was mostly on track. But now it seemed as though Lestrange was going to derail that train and endanger the entire world in the process.

---

Rose and Hermione came down for breakfast the next morning and as expected her being in the tournament was the topic on everyone's lips. It was a mixed bag in terms of responses from the other students, some like the Gryffindors were giving her the thumbs up in support of sneaking in, where as the Hufflepuffs were the opposite sending her harsh glares and muttering how she cheated Cedric out of his rightful glory and the chance for their house to finally be in the spotlight for once.

However before anyone could do anything, a loud explosion startled the occupants of the castle.

"And that Mad-Eye is what I think about your suggestion to come quietly," Lestrange cackled madly striding into the Great Hall through the smoke. "Good morning peons, reprobates and playthings."

"Well at least he's having fun," Hermione snarked while rolling her eyes, already moving out of the way of whatever chaos the demented teen was getting up to.

"He got all the attention off of me for the moment so I'll take what I can get." Rose whispered and hurried along so that she was out of the spotlight for whatever antics while silently thanking Stephen for his distraction.

"Come on, Albus, just one little curse," Alastor pleaded with the headmaster for permission to go after the student they wished to interrogate.

"Unfortunately, that is not an option," Albus sighed because now they were too public and an attack would likely not play out well in the Great Hall. "However the man who impersonated you had gotten Mr. Lestrange to agree to be his assistant for his lessons."

Grumbling for a moment, the scarred professor then spat on the ground and stomped away with a rhythmic thunk of his wooden leg striking the stone floor. "I'll take what I can get then. Lestrange we have N.E.W.T. students after breakfast, we're going over advanced curses."

"Wouldn't miss it, you walking relic," Lestrange smiled up at the professor. "Oh Poppy, make sure you have plenty of soothing salve ready, people are going to have some bruises when we're done."

The seventh year students cringed knowing that their classroom was going to become a battlefield again just like it had been before when their professor and lower year student held the lesson.

"Thanks Stephen," Rose whispered to the boy who just nodded and took a bite of his food while the mail owls started flocking in. She was glad to get a letter from Sirius who she had owled late last night about the situation she was in, he still had some more time in rehab before he could take over as her guardian but that had been worthwhile to uncover the truth about her parents' betrayal.

---

"So he's really the one who betrayed my parents?" Rose asked while holding onto Peter Pettigrew still in his disguise as Scabbers.

Lestrange nodded and took a sip of his drink. "Yup," flicking his wand to turn Peter from rat to slightly less rat. There was no concern about him fleeing currently because he was under a heavy sleeping spell at the moment.

"Gross, I almost changed in the same room as him one time, but then I saw his little head poke up and I got a weird feeling so I gave him back to Ron," Rose barely suppressed a gag at the thought this creep would have seen her naked before she let the boy she wanted to ask out did.

"Rose if you had told me that earlier, I would have had his corpse displayed in the Great Hall long ago," Lestrange sighed.

"I didn't know he was a person, you could have told me a while ago," Rose pouted.

"Well if I did, you would have acted on it and despite him being a coward he did enough to impress Voldemort to be given his brand and that was for more than being a spy. And a direct fight with him when you were eleven would not have been good for you," sliding up the sleeve to reveal the dark mark and also take the wand away from him.

Rose gave her companion a strange look at the action.

"Don't worry, I'll take care of this," pocketing the ivory white wood. "But for now, I'll add a few compulsions to him so he doesn't run. And then this fun little one for later," letting out a cackle about how this charm will kick in should the man attempt something stupid.

And it was a few months later near the end of the third year when Rose learned just what that fun little one actually was.

"Oh god, it hurts, why can't I run?" Peter screamed on the ground, writhing in agony from his attempt to transform back into a rat to escape while Remus let out a gasp from the pain of his affliction taking hold.

"Because you are cursed," Rose answered proudly, realizing that this must have been what Lestrange had put on the rat, to trigger when he tried to transform back and flee.

"Yes but we're all still going to die because that idiot forgot his potion," Snape hissed in frustration before a rapid moving light flew past his head, barely grazing his ear.

"Honestly, I cannot even go for a late night stroll without stumbling upon incompetence." Lestrange tutted disappointingly as he walked down the pathway towards the group who were looking at Professor Lupin's attempt to break the mighty chains holding him. "For once Weasley has an excuse of being injured, Granger always locks up under pressure, Potter has had to do more than you all combined and yet here you are Sevie Wevie, with a wand in your hand and still completely feckless."

Dragging along behind him was a thrashing dementor. Seeing that was drawing some attention. "Oh don't worry, I just wanted to experiment with one of them. Something about their ability to suck out a person's soul intrigues me."

"Lestrange," Snape snarled in frustration that this student continued to cause problems and take every chance to annoy him.

"Shut up," Lestrange said, snapping his wand to strike the potion master in the head with a spell that would lock up his joints.

Sirius however recognized the boy as he would come to Azkaban frequently carrying wonderful smelling food that he shared with his mother. "Lestrange, you will stay back. I came to this school to protect Rose from Peter and from you once I was able to remember that you'd be in her year."

"That's rich, protect her from me, please, you're skin and bones, a stiff breeze could knock you over and I could take Rose here and now and there's nothing you could do to stop me but watch." Lestrange taunted before looking to see that Rose was glaring at him, which meant he needed to dial it back a bit.

"Fine, fine, I can see when I'm not wanted. Take the Dark Lord's whipping boy to Dumbledore, and see if you can get that trial you were denied so long ago."

"You knew?" Sirius questioned, to him it sounded like for years someone outside the prison had knowledge that he was innocent of his crimes, but it was beyond frustrating that it was a person who he believed would in no way help him if he knew.

"Of course I knew, my mother told me you were never one of the Dark Lord's servants," Lestrange cackled. "I thought it was hilarious. You the great and clever Sirius Black outwitted by the coward Peter Pettigrew. Oh that was amazing, if you hadn't tried to trick everyone then Rose wouldn't have been an orphan, she would have grown up in a loving household and you wouldn't have been left to rot for twelve years."

"FUCK YOU!" Sirius roared angrily at how he was being mocked for his mistakes, mistakes that he knew he made and that ruined so many lives. The ones that haunted him every day for the past dozen years.

"Alright already, I'm leaving," Lestrange held up one of his hands and palmed his wand. "By the way, a fair warning that spell on Professor Furry won't last forever, so you have about five minutes before it wears off."

Taking the dementor deeper into the Forbidden Forest, Rose was grateful for Lestrange's intervention because she had no idea how to get out of this situation with everything as it was needed to be.

---

"Sorry for the intrusion professor, I'm here to collect Rose for the Weighing of the Wands down by the lake?" Colin said after interrupting Snape's lesson.

The potion's professor managed a glare at the teenage girl and waved her off.

"Thanks for the save Colin," Rose smiled at the younger boy who just blushed furiously at getting a compliment from his crush. Unfortunately for him and many other boys in the castle, Rose was unaware that she was the object of their affection.

"Just I uh- you always... yeah," Colin sighed happily watching Rose continue to walk down the grass towards the tent.

---

"So you want to tell me what happened?" Lestrange asked while Rose sat angrily by the fire in the common room. Most everyone else was outright avoiding her because they could see the young lady was furious about something.

"No, I want you to kill Rita Skeeter for me," Rose huffed in her spot.

Lestrange coughed from behind his flesh bound book that no one was sure where he got it from. "Assassinations must be paid up front, cost ranges depending on level of difficulty, annoying overconfident reporters will cost you one hundred and fifty galleons," listing off the prices for his services dryly while flipping to another page of the dark spell book.

Rose rifled through her pockets before grunting in annoyance. "Hermione do you have any money on you I don't think I have enough," counting out the coins in her purse.

"Rose, I am not helping you put out a hit on a reporter and Lestrange stop encouraging her." Hermione scolded trying to be the voice of reason in the room.

"Hey, that's a pretty reasonable price to pay for a top grade disposal. Most others in the business don't start lower than a thousand even for an easy job like this," Lestrange commented because he felt that he had very competitive rates to offer especially as his immediate client base was not made up of those who had lots of extra money to spend on eliminating their enemies.

"That is not the point…" Hermione glared before blinking. "Out of curiosity?"

"One thousand seven hundred and eighty, but do you really want Greengrass out of your way that badly to claim top marks in the year?" Offhandedly quoting the cost of killing the blonde Slytherin ice queen.

Hermione sighed and shook her head. "I can beat her in all the classes this year I'm sure of it."

"Why is Greengrass so much higher than Skeeter?" Katie Bell asked out of pure concern that the price was so vastly different.

"Oh Rita's disposal and coverup is so much easier to do, with someone like Greengrass her disappearance would need more extensive work to cover up and the possible necessity of pinning it on someone else who could have believably done it and to keep people from discovering who it was that hired me," Lestrange explained before setting down his book. "There's actually a lot of prep work that goes into a proper assassination I can't just walk up to her in the Great Hall and slit her throat after all."

"Right right," Katie nodded because she understood at least that much and if you were going to kill someone you would want to get away with it. "But Skeeter for so little?"

"Oh that's because I could kill her in front of the headmaster in broad daylight and get away with it and honestly, now that I think about it, that would make for quite the interesting bragging rights."

Angelina whistled appreciatively, "That's certainly a bold claim. I almost want to help pay for it just to see if you can actually pull it off."

"There's still time for her to get on my nerves this year, maybe she winds up dead and no one has to pay a sickle," Lestrange shrugged before returning to the original topic. "However, that does not answer my original question, Rose, why are you so upset?"

"Skeeter cornered me for an interview after the wand ceremony," Rose meekly answered before looking around the room at all the eavesdroppers. "Sorry this is girl talk," she said and at that point, Ginny, Hermione and the chasers started to usher the guys out of the room. "Wait, Lestrange can stay. He asked after all."

Since it was Rose who was speaking, the other girls respected that it was her decision to have anyone else there, which is probably why she wasn't going up to the female dorms. A silencing charm went up to stop any eavesdroppers as an added measure.

"I didn't think there was anything too bad about getting an interview, I thought it would just be about the tournament, I would give a few statements that didn't mean anything and she'd move on to pester the other champions." Rose pulled up her legs to her chest and stared into the fire.

"Instead of just doing it off to the side she pulled me into a broom closet in the tent. Why was there even a broom closet there? It doesn't make any sense," Rose snarled at the thought of that stupid room being in the tent. "But the first thing she said to me was, I bet this makes you feel right at home."

Gasps rang out from the other girls who over the years Rose had opened up to about her previous home life with the Dursleys. They were like the sisters she never had and being able to get off her chest how she was raised deepend that friendship. As a result when last year others were giving her condolences for the death of her remaining family the other girls were happy that she was finally free.

"Huh, curious she knows about that," Lestrange hummed because he hadn't thought that anyone outside of Hogwarts was aware of Rose's upbringing that she had not told herself.

"And how do you know?" Alicia glared, unsure why Lestrange seemed so confident that he understood what Rose was going through.

"Oh I know many things, like how calico pattern looks so cute on Hermione and that you shave a certain symbol-"

"OKAY!" Alicia quickly shouted and pointed her wand threateningly. "How the fuck? Honestly, are you spying on us in the showers?"

"Pfft, please I have standards. I would never be reduced to the same level as a garden variety pervert." Lestrange closed the tome he was reading and stored it back in his robes for later. "Let's say that I know much of what goes on in this castle that others are not privy to."

"Right, because you knew Moody was impersonated before anyone else," Ginny chimed in after it had gotten out that the real Mad-Eye had been rescued and his impostor chased from the castle.

"And many more diary girl," Lestrange smirked at how the horror flashed across the ginger girl's face, because she hadn't told anyone outside her family about that incident, of course Rose and Hermione knew being involved but they had kept it secret for the express purpose that people didn't try anything to make her family get in trouble for it.

"Stephen!" Rose barked out, nipping his antagonism in the bud with her frustrated tone.

"Sorry, I'm still working on that whole being more sensitive thing, it's hard. Cut me some slack," Lestrange responded to the implied order. "But if Skeeter knows about your homelife then she's got another source of information. Someone fed it to her."

"One of the professors?" Rose asked.

Lestrange shrugged in response. "I can try to find out if you'd like. But I suspect it would be the person who set up the tent for the ceremony to for some inexplicable reason included a broom cupboard. After all, what purpose would that serve when the tent was placed out on grass other than to allow that particular verbal jab?" raising an eyebrow at Rose who deduced that Dumbledore had to be the one letting that information out, implying that he knew more about how she had lived before Hogwarts than he let on.

"That bastard!" Rose shrieked in frustration because over the years she had suspected that the headmaster was moving pieces in the background to some goal, it was confirmed when after her first year things didn't add up when she looked at them. The puzzles being easily solvable by a first year and her friends, the mirror being in a location she had access to multiple times was also a key part of the scheme, how he conveniently took an at least eight hour broom flight to the ministry rather than floo, apparate, portkey or use his phoenix to travel.

Year after year of danger in her life that she scraped by with luck and help from the shadows by her secret friend, and it all seemed that Dumbledore was aware of quite a bit more. Not acting surprised when she turned in the diary or that Sirius Black had been her godfather the whole time.

There was stoicism that Lestrange had, a part of the personality that kept a straight face at all times, but even he let that down in the private moments they shared, where Rose knew that Lestrange was more than just an unfeeling psychopath. But Albus Dumbledore to the surface seemed like he reacted to things but nothing ever shocked him.

Learning that a professor was killed underneath his school and the dark wizard the world feared was still alive should have gotten more of a reaction than a five minute talk in the hospital wing. Finding out about a massive creature that could have killed everyone if it came in during one of the feasts when the castle was packed into one place should have sent a shiver down his spine, but still just a soft smile. That the famous betrayer of her family was actually innocent this whole time and all he had to say was how glad he was that things were cleared up.

"How much to have you kill Dumbledore?" Rose asked firmly, to the shock of the others who assumed that Rose was a staunch supporter of the headmaster.

"Oh my dear, when it comes to the headmaster, that one will be free of charge," Lestrange cackled gleefully at the knowledge that he had finally turned Rose against the mighty Albus Percival Wulfric Brian Dumbledore completely. "Don't you worry your pretty little head about that."

Seeing that the other girls were quite confused. "Stephen, I think it's time we reveal ourselves." Nodding to her secret best friend for his approval.

"Do you trust them?" Looking at the five other girls who were more confused than they were a second ago, because the pair was speaking in parseltongue, it was well known that Lestrange possessed the infamous ability, even now people still assumed he was the Heir of Slytherin, but many forgot that Rose was capable of the language of snakes as well.

"Yes, I do, after everything comes out, I'm sure they'll trust you too."

"Then you have my blessing my little bud," Lestrange grinned and watched the show.

Rose spilled her guts, everything she hadn't told another soul about her relationship with the famous child of the mad witch.

Her first time meeting him when she felt like she was on the brink of death, how he spent countless nights being the only thing in her life to cling to when she felt like she was going insane. That by the time she had gotten her Hogwarts letter she was not a frail, meek little girl who could be plied by just anyone.

She went over how for every one of her years at Hogwarts Lestrange had secretly been working in the shadows to keep her safe, which in turn kept much of school safe. "He's the one who told me how to find you Hermione, when I knew I had to come get you, I didn't know where to go, but he slipped me a note before I ran off. He snuck in behind me and Ron in case things got out of control."

"And Ginny, he told me what was going on with the diary once he had narrowed it down to someone in our house. He told me that he would take care of it, but you had gone into the chamber by then and it was a mess, but he was crucial to discovering that it was controlling you and he made sure that Tom was gone from it forever."

"He's the one who… who saved me from my uncle. When Vernon got drunk one night he didn't see his niece or didn't care," Rose sobbed thinking back to the last time her uncle ever touched her. "For years I wondered why no one could hear them yelling or hitting me, but Stephen did, he stopped my uncle and freed me from the Dursleys. It was brutal but, if I had gone back there this summer, I… I don't think I would be the same."

"You never did say what your uncle was trying to do, was he… you know?" Katie spoke up softly, she like everyone else was astonished that they had completely misjudged their fellow house member.

"I think if Stephen hadn't stopped him, then he would have." Rose nodded. "With them gone Dumbledore didn't bother to try to put me back at Privet Drive, but I think part of whatever kept me 'safe'," air quoting the word because she knew it was fraudulent. "Also made it so no one could hear what was going on in the house. How for years I could live in a cupboard under the stairs and no one would think it abnormal if they saw me crawl out of it."

"I don't know if it was on purpose or by accident, but Albus Dumbledore made my life hell and the only one who came to my rescue was Stephen. So of course I fell in love with him." sniffling and looking up at the boy who held her heart. "How could I not?"

"Damn…" Angelina whistled. "So you're really a softy aren't you?" chuckling being the only thing she could do in this situation from hearing the truth come out.

"Hey, I have killed many people, didn't you hear her, I murdered her remaining family." Lestrange protested the moniker of soft.

"Yeah to keep your girlfriend safe," Katie pursed her lips and talked down to Lestrange. "Underneath all that dark magic and angst is a boy who fell in love with our Rosey."

"Rose and Stephen sitting in a tree, k.i.s.s.i.n.g," Ginny giggled happily to learn that all of her idol's childhood hadn't been as nightmarish as she thought it was.

"But you all have to keep quiet, if word gets out about this, then… who knows what's going to happen?" Rose requested of her friends, feeling so much better about not having to hide everything.

"Why would anything bad happen Rose?" Hermione asked, unsure why they weren't more open about their friendship.

"Lestrange?" Rose opened up the floor for her friend to explain this part.

"Gladly," Stephen straightened up. "Voldemort is not dead and Albus Dumbledore knows this. He has had proof of this since the first year's end and the method in which he survived in the second year. That I, a person who barely knew Mad-Eye Moody could see through Barty's disguise meant that a close friend of his should have deduced that immediately. But if he knew that Barty was here for a reason and allowed him to play things out rather than act immediately regardless of how disadvantageous that may have been in the grand scheme."

"Albus Dumbledore is a man who claims to fight For The Greater Good but whose Good is it? I know our history lessons are lacking but," Lestrange shrugged until Hermione gasped.

"That was Gellert Gridnlewald's phrase he used to justify his actions, it's literally over the gates of Nurmengard," the brunette witch realized where she had heard the phrase before. "But since he's saying it in English we don't quite connect it with Grindelwald."

"Exactly, here have a cookie," Stephen smirked and tossed a treat at the girl who looked very offended at the offering. "Sorry, ugh, I'll stop condescending your friends now, it's just hard, she's so easy to tease. Can you blame me?" Stephen held up his hands.

"But the point is that after stopping Grindelwald, he was given numerous government positions and yet, things haven't improved. Worldwide the magical communities are sitting on the precipice of downfall and Voldemort is going to bring it to ruins just for his fantasy of ruling like a king."

"The closed circuit camera network is expanding beyond just the rail stations, roads and stadiums," Lestrange steepled his fingers and leaned forward. "As much as Grindelwald was wrong he was also right, the muggles will be our downfall because all it's going to take is some drunken idiot coming out and not understanding that they are being watched and then the magical world is exposed."

"Do you really think the muggles would like to hear that their governments have been hiding a secret society? One that predates upon them? An entire world just on the other side of a thin veil?" Lestrange asked of the collected group of girls.

"The banal issue of muggle baiting will be the least of their complaints, we are better than them. We don't get things like cancer, we're stronger, more durable and we heal easier than they do and we live longer. We can do things they cannot. There will be demands, potions, spells, magical relics to solve problems. Can our society sustain such a thing?"

"How many plants can we grow to make potions for the muggles who will want to buy them? How sustainable will the lethifold population be when every muggle wishes to have their own invisibility cloak? Can you answer those right now?" Lestrange looked up at the girls who seemed concerned where he was going with his point.

"Because I can't, right now I cannot tell you how things will turn out if some idiot like Voldemort starts a war that brings us all into the light. What I do know is that if we are seen as the enemy, blood chooses blood." Lestrange stared at Hermione who realized she was being singled out.

"What?" the brunette responded to the look she was receiving.

"If you had to choose between your parents or Malfoy, who would you pick?" Lestrange asked the rhetorical question. "It should be obvious, you dislike Malfoy and love your mother and father, of course you would side with them. But sides go beyond that, muggleborns like yourself who have been kicked out by the purebloods will back blood."

"If you thought that things were ugly during Voldermort's reign, I promise you it will get a lot worse." Lestrange said darkly. "And that's not even talking about how for once the Americans have it right."

"When do the muggles put in laws to restrict what we can do? When do they say that witches and wizards learning to apparate is unfair to those that cannot and forbid it. That education must be lowered because some spells are too dangerous. That it is unfair to their company's bottom lines."

"If you think it's bad that pureblood families hoard family magic, when the government gets involved to stop people from learning certain branches of magic that's when it can get ugly. The only people who will have anything resembling a proper magical education will be the old families who can safely keep the more potent magics to themselves."

"You're exaggerating," Alicia scoffed.

"Oh really, why is it that animaemancy has been forgotten except for one thing then?"

"What thing?" Katie questioned thinking that Lestrange must have a point.

"Come on Rose, what did you learn about your godfather?"

"He's an animagus," the redhead answered.

"But animae- is a prefix that means soul, that would mean the animagus is soul magic," Hermione realized what Lestrange was trying to get at.

"Exactly. Animaemancy is known as soul magic but at some point it was banned as a practice, and the reason why is because of this, Avada Kedavra," shooting the killing curse into the flaming fireplace causing the red to turn a sickly green and hiss harshly. "The study of the soul was outlawed when they saw that people could make dangerous things by tampering with the human soul, it's why the unforgivables cannot be blocked by traditional shields."

"Because the unforgivables attack the soul, while all currently known shields just stop attacks on the body," Katie put together after a moment.

"And that's barely scratching the surface, it's why anything in the restricted section about soul magic was removed after Voldemort graduated, he dabbled in soul magic."

"The diary, that was a part of his soul," Ginny gasped from getting a new perspective on what happened to her in her first year of schooling. "But that's evil."

"No, that particular thing he did was evil, right now the general public only knows about four pieces of soul magic, the three unforgivables and the animagus transformation, but what branch of magic has only three spells and one ritual? It is an untapped branch that could have revolutionized our way of life but it was forbidden because some people were afraid of the power others could gain from it while they could not."

"And you're saying that the muggles who wouldn't have magic would restrict all magic out of fear?" Katie asked.

"I'm certain of it, it would be hundreds of years before our population took up a significant portion of the world and that would only be possible through forced breeding programs. For wizards it would be easier as the amount of women we could put a child in would simply be limited by time… and alcohol but for witches…"

"We'd have to be incubators," Angelina gagged in revulsion at the idea of being a breeder for children.

"But that goes back to the earlier point, could we support in a decade or so another one million witches and wizards in just our country, the wands needed, the typical supplies. There are only a few hundred students in Hogwarts, if they tried to later incentivize increasing the number of magicals in the world to accelerate everyone having our incredible gift, could we sustain it?"

"I don't know," Rose shrugged. This was a topic that went way over her head, honestly Lestrange sounded like a bit of a loon talking the way he was.

"No one knows, but if it can't we're going to have problems and that will come if we do not have a way to reasonably ease our world back into theirs, so it takes one idiot blowing the lid off things before either side is ready to have this discussion to likely spark conflict."

"But what does Dumbledore have to do with this?" Angelina asked, wanting to get back to the original topic.

"Dumbledore knows that a war is brewing and yet this is not public knowledge, he has not taken his proof to the wizengamot nor the ICW and shown it and then gotten those who could corroborate it to speak. After the attack at the World Cup known "imperious victims" were not questioned, we just accepted that a dozen new death eaters showed up out of nowhere with no provocation and that this supposedly had nothing to do with Voldemort."

"That was an international event and yet no other country demanded investigations because Albus Dumbledore handled it, he's the only one they would have listened to in this case. Fudge is a known moron in the international political scene but Albus is respected for what he did in the war against Grindelwald."

"So why is he letting these things happen?" Katie demanded to know. To her it didn't add up that Dumbledore was just allowing bad things to continue.

"Because he knows something and it's about Rose," pointing his finger at the redhead. "Voldemort didn't just attack your parents without a reason and even if he did, that you survived while he did not would have been an unseen outcome unless there was something else in play."

"He chose my family but why?" Rose asked the obvious question.

"That I don't know, it's the one card Dumbledore is holding closest to his chest and I can't see it," Lestrange admitted. "If I did, I could possibly end all of this now, but I can't and if I'm wrong then you could be in real danger that I can't protect you from."

"Merlin you are seriously in love with her aren't you, playing bad boy super spy just to make sure she lives," Alicia teased only to get a stinging hex in the thigh for her laugh. "Still funny."

"Anyway, keep safe Rose," Lestrange sighed. "I have to go out again tonight."

"No stay," Rose asked and reached out for her friend.

"I'm sorry, there's so much going on, whispers in my ears that dark forces are on the move and I have to learn what they say and who says them," slipping on his cloak while heading towards the door leading out of the common room.

"I hate when you go out," Rose pouted sadly because after such an emotional conversation she would have liked to have his presence to help comfort her.

"Yeah, but I always come back," Lestrange smiled and stepped out of the portrait into the grand staircase.

"But every time I get scared that this will be the one when you don't," Rose whimpered to the closed door.

"Wow, makes Fred and George sneaking us treats from the kitchen after curfew look childish," Angelina sighed to Alecia, knowing that Lestrange just set the bar impossibly high for anyone else for what he had been doing over the years for Rose.

---

"Your first task is to steal the egg of a nesting mother dragon," Lestrange said to Rose from the otherside of a bookshelf in the library.

"That's insane," Hermione gasped in shock at the reveal of the first task.

"I confirmed with Charlie through Ginny," Stephen continued. "It's surprisingly helpful to have extra people do information gathering for me."

"How'd you manage this?" Rose inquired how Lestrange had gotten Ginny to help him with this.

"Mentioned that her older brother was here at the school and slipped her a note, she did the rest. She is surprisingly manipulative with her brothers, it brings a tear to my eye," faking emotion and stepping out of his hiding spot and handing off a book to Rose. "Here this should have some tricks you can pull off, I'm sure the chasers will be able to help you with the spells since they are a little above fourth year."

"Rose, there you are, I have to tell you," Ginny panted from having run all the way up from the Forbidden Forest where she just left Charlie and the caged beasts.

"Thanks Ginny, Stephen got here first though," Rose offered a sheepish smile to her younger friend's urgency to give her this critical information.

"Dammit Lestrange, how fast are you?" the redheaded girl wiped her brow.

"Pester Fred and George to show you all the secret passageways in the castle, it makes getting around easier." Slipping past the girls to head back out for more of his own business.

"I will and I figured Ron would have already said something though because he found Charlie first, apparently he got an owl days ago that he was coming and to give you a bit of a warning," Ginny said, falling into a seat tired from legging it through the packed castle.

"Hasn't said a thing to me," Rose shrugged then tightened her grip on that book. "I can't believe him," the redheaded girl hissed angrily. "Even after knowing I didn't enter myself into the tournament he withheld this from me, I could have had more than a few days to prepare."

"Maybe he forgot, he's a bit of an idiot," Ginny offered, partly in the hopes that Ron hadn't just not said anything about the dragons coming to the school.

Later that night Rose awoke to someone sitting down on her bed. "Stephen," Rose sat up but managed to keep her voice down. The moonlight shining in through the window lit up his features. "Are you here to...?" her voice gained a slight eagerness to its tone about a possible reasoning for the visit.

"Ravish you?" Lestrange smirked, his teeth glinting in the dark. "Oh now that would be fun, but sadly no. Karkaroff and Madam Maxima know about the dragons. Therefore it is reasonable to assume that their champions will as well, which just leaves…"

"Cedric," Rose realized that her fellow champion was going to be unprepared for what they would be facing. "Are you telling this to me so that I can help him?" Sitting up she was aware that she only had on her sheer nightgown so she clutched her blankets close to herself.

"I'm telling you this because you deserve to know and make your own choice of what to do with this information, just like I always have." Lestrange stood up and moved towards the window silently. "Also tell Granger she can stop hiding next to you, but it's nice to know that you cuddle."

"Jerk," Hermione's voice squeaked out in annoyance at being teased for liking to share a bed with Rose, especially after the girl pretty much moved in with them over the summer because of her family situation.

---

"Cedric," Rose called out as she ran up to the Hufflepuff champion and older heartthrob of many girls in the school.

"Rose Potter?" Cedric turned curiously to address the Gryffindor champion.

"Hey can we, uh go somewhere private?" requesting because she was not liking the glares from the others hanging around Cedric, with him dating Cho Chang and her being the Ravenclaw seeker, it did seem like the only friends she had were in her own house.

"I don't uh-" the taller boy started to say when his girlfriend grabbed his arm to stop him.

"Anything she has to say can be said in front of us." Cho snarked while getting territorial about her boyfriend going off with another girl who she viewed as a potential rival both on and off the Quidditch pitch.

"Well it's about the tournament," Rose rubbed her arm hoping that would be enough.

"If it's official tournament stuff then one of the judges or Mr. Bagman would be getting Cedric, not you." Cho continued speaking for her boyfriend before he could get a word in.

"It's not really official it's just I know what the first task is and I-" Rose tried to correct the girl but was cut off.

"See she's cheating Cedric just like I said, you shouldn't listen to her, you don't know what could happen if you do," Cho quickly interjected and started to push Cedric away from Rose with the others standing around him glaring and moving their favored champion away from her.

"I'm guessing things didn't go well?" Hermione figured that her friends' attempt to relay that information hadn't gone well when she just took a seat in the middle of the group and face planted into the table with a groan.

"No, Cho wouldn't let me talk to him," Rose sighed.

"Maybe someone else can try," Katie suggested. "I'm sure if you word it the right way you can get Lestrange to convey the message to him."

"You seriously think you can manipulate him?" Ginny questioned. "The guy tricked everyone in the castle for the last four years and has been going under the nose of Dumbledore and Voldemort at the same time."

"Show him your knickers, I bet he does whatever you say then," Angelina suggested.

"I'm not… I mean," Rose blushed knowing that undressing for Lestrange would be beneficial in more ways than one. "I don't want to show him those for something like this."

"Show me what?" Lestrange asked as he dropped down from the rafters, startling those who have not gotten used to looking up.

"Do you sleep up there?" Alicia questioned the strange younger teen.

"Sometimes," Lestrange shrugged and took a plate to get some breakfast. "No one looks for me up there and even if someone like Filch sees me, what is he going to do about it?"

"Clever," Hermione surmised.

"Plus if I stayed in the dorms, I would have smothered your brother with my pillow years ago for all the snoring he does and I think the other boys wouldn't even say a thing about it." Lestrange nodded to Ron down the way who was pigging out on the food like always.

"I doubt they would," Ginny sighed, knowing that none of her siblings would have been able to really hold a grudge for that, since they had gotten creative to combat Ron's snoring at the Burrow.

"And they were just shutting up." Rose hissed at her female friends to not repeat any of that to her crush. "But I tried to talk to Cedric and he, or more like Cho, wouldn't let him listen."

"Does him going into the pit with a dragon unprepared make you worried?" Stephen questioned why Rose would get so worked up over this, it wasn't like Cedric was a close friend of hers.

"Yes, just because I didn't put myself into the tournament doesn't mean I'm okay with seeing others die, please." Rose folded her hands together.

"Don't," Stephen warned while trying to not look at her face.

Rose's bottom lip quivered and her eyes started to get wet. "Please, Stephen, I'll be really sad if you don't."

"Not falling for it again," Stephen pointed a fork accusingly at the girl who got under his skin.

"Yes you will because you can't stand to see me cry," Rose countered.

"Ugh fine," Stephen shouted and stood up from the table then walked over to the adjacent one, shoving many Hufflepuffs out of his way. "Come on pretty boy, you and I are going to talk." Rudely stomping off with Cedric who tried to put up a fight but the arm around his neck made it difficult. "Shut up you yellow wearing extras, I don't have time for your bitching and whining." Silencing the other protesting Hufflepuffs with a glare.

"Well I had hoped he would be more subtle about it." Rose sighed but ultimately the job would get done.

Cedric returned a half an hour later disheveled and on shaky feet but nonetheless profusely thanked Rose before running up to the head table to ask the professors for advice on different training than he was already doing.

Lestrange came back a minute later, flinging his hands about and flicking blood on the floor. "Dumb dragon handlers, I told them, 'don't do anything stupid'. But what do they do, try and stop me. That'll show them."

"Did you just kill my second coolest older brother?" Ginny shouted causing heads to turn.

"No, but he will have a few extra scars after today," Stephen answered as he used a napkin to wipe the remaining blood off of himself.

"Second coolest, who's the first?" Fred questioned feeling a bit offended.

"Duh, Bill, you didn't think I was talking about Percy. It goes Bill, Charlie, then the both of you and Percy and Ron are tied." Ginny explained how she ranked her brothers on the coolness scale.

George pondered that for a moment then just let out a small noise. "Guess I can't really fault her for that."

"What, why am I tied with that git?" Ron protested.

"Because you are such an embarrassment," Ginny shouted before storming out of the hall.

"I think…" Stephen paused for a moment assessing the reactions from the other Hogwarts students who weren't even really giving him a second look. "That everyone here has gotten too used to me coming into rooms covered in blood."

A particularly strange blonde Ravenclaw who tended to sit further from her housemates looked up from her copy of the Quibbler. "It has gotten a bit banal really."

"Well then I will have to endeavor to try harder in the future, Ms…" trailing off.

"Lovegood," Luna responded.

"Don't mind if I do," Stephen chuckled darkly and reached for her hand.

"Oh you," Luna playfully giggled and let the odd boy kiss the back of her hand.

"Ahhh, so nice to meet new people." Lestrange said while deciding that he could have fun with this new person for a while.

"Uh oh, looks like you have some competition Rose," Angelina snorted out watching Lestrange and Loony Lovegood make easy conversation.

"No I don't," Rose scoffed but also feeling a bit concerned because she never had a chance to just sit in public with Lestrange like that and it made her feel a little jealous of the younger witch.

---

"I'm just saying, killing curse is a fall back option, that or the blood freezing curse," Lestrange suggested to Rose for a means of dealing with her scaled foe.

Rose just shut out Lestrange so she didn't get too many ideas in her head at once. "Not now Lestrange, I have a plan that the girls helped me with, I don't need you messing with me."

"Fine, so how about it Blondy?" Turning his attention to the other champions who were gathered in the tent for the event. "I can probably teach you the lung crusher curse in the next five minutes if you really tried hard enough, no? Fine."

The other champions were nervous about their upcoming battle and would have liked Lestrange to leave them alone in the tent but as he told Ludo Bagman, I'll leave if you can make me leave.

A fight was not something they wished to expend their energy on right now when they had such a dangerous foe to face.

---

Rose was very nervous about stepping out into the arena with a pissed off Hungarian Horntail. She along with the other girls in Gryffindor had studied about every type of known dragon, along with Ginny pestering her brother to explain all four dragons in the cages, really helped narrow things down but they couldn't be too careful.

So her plan was to transfigure a bunch of stones in the arena into sturdy walls to provide as much cover as possible and then to summon her invisibility cloak and make a mad dash for the egg.

A plan that hopefully would work because direct combat with a massive fire breathing magic resistant reptile was not what she was prepared for even if Lestrange had taught her some pretty nasty dark spells just in case.

Stepping out into the crowd she was immediately assaulted by a plume of flames, which is exactly what the plan accounted for, they deduced that Rose's luck would ensure she got the most dangerous and uncontrollable of the dragons to battle. That meant the Hungarian Horntail would try to ambush her the moment she came out.

Thankfully she was quick on her feet and rolled out of the way of the fire before it could cook her. Flicking her wand up Rose shouted out the sunlight spell, which on an overcast day like this was much brighter than before and the dragon shrieked as its vision became overwhelmed by the harsh light. With the opening created, Rose started to transfigure stones around the arena into various birds, rabbits and even the occasional deer. The cacophony of noise and movement was enough to confuse the large beast as it started to try and track any particular target.

The problem came about when Ludo Bagman announced that Rose had made it to the nest. While most would consider dragons as nothing more than flying, fire-breathing reptiles, a dragon was an intelligent creature and these dragons that came from a preserve understood many human words. So when the Horntail heard the word for nest, it was able to turn its attention immediately to where its clutch was located and saw the human reaching for one of its eggs.

"Fucking moron!" Lestrange roared as he realized that Ludo Bagman in an attempt to try and hype up Rose's challenge more because he was a gambling addict who put money on the outcome of the events had just endangered this champion further.

"She'll be fine, we prepared for this," Hermione said to Lestrange who was moving to intervene. "See," pointing her hand up to the sky where Rose's Firebolt was rocketing down towards her to give her the needed speed to get away.

"I'm still going to curse the man," Lestrange huffed in his spot, settling himself back down since he needed to trust in Rose's own ability.

The Gryffindor chasers just smirked when Lestrange started tapping his foot against the wood. Until Rose crossed the threshold of the tent with her golden egg then in a blur of movement aided by the crowd of students standing up and cheering he slipped out without much notice.

"Wow, so that's how he does it?" Katie hummed because had she not been paying attention then it would have been easy to miss. "We get so focused on everything else and when everyone is moving around like this you barely see him sneak away."

The girls got up from their seats to move around to where the champions were being tended to only to see a hand reach through a flap wrap around Ludo Bagman's mouth, pulling him out of sight and a few empty fire whiskey bottles get placed back where the man had once been. Angelina just stood still for a moment before laughing. "And when anyone questions where he went, they'll think he got drunk and took off for a piss. He lets them see what they want to see."

While congratulating Rose on her success in the task their praise was interrupted when Ron Weasley barged in.

---

"You should have let him stew for longer Rose," Lestrange mumbled while sitting in the back of Charms. After her task with the dragon Ron Weasley had come in to attempt the world's worst apology and unfortunately for his own sanity, she accepted it.

"He's been my friend for the last three years," Rose responded with a whisper. "I know he's difficult but-"

"He still turned his back on you over something ridiculous as a tournament he didn't know existed or fame that had been forgotten by everyone. As for the money, a thousand galleons is a pathetic amount to let go to his head, especially for the work that he would have to put in just to survive. If he got a summer job he'd make about the same and he wouldn't have to fight a dragon for it."

Swishing his wand around for the darker version of the spell they were being taught, he just smirked at Professor Flitwick's glare at him going off the planned lesson. "Why should you forgive a betrayal like that?"

Rose twisted her wrist to cast the spell that had been assigned to them. "Because I don't hold grudges like you."

"I guess that's for the best," Lestrange mused while then slyly grinning. "You know that you have to find a date for the Yule Ball now."

Rose winced at the prospect of having a boy come up to try and ask her out or worse her trying to find a boy to ask. She hoped that she could find the time to get Lestrange alone when turning to look at him he was no longer in his seat. "Honestly if I didn't know better, I'd have guessed his last name was Wayne."

---

Rose was busy poking at her lunch while watching guys and girls throughout the Great Hall send furtive glances at each other, some working up the courage to ask their boyfriends and girlfriends to the dance or the people they hope to become closer to. The whole time she was worried about what she would do if someone came up and asked her.

She kept taking glances around the room to see that some boys were looking at her, far more than she knew and then with the boys she did know it just made her more concerned that someone like Colin was planning to shove a bouquet of roses in her face. He was cute and all but that was it.

Suddenly the conversations dropped down to a whisper and everyone turned to the large doors. Standing there confidently in a pristine suit, reaching up to adjust the blood red tie, Stephen Lestrange took slow and purposeful steps down the rows of students. "Rose," Lestrange smiled devilishly after stopping in front of the young witch.

"Le-Lestrange," Rose gulped down her excitement at seeing Lestrange looming over her.

"I'm taking you to the Yule Ball, I'm going to give you the wonderful night you deserve," Lestrange stated while reaching out to gently caress her cheek. He finished by dragging his finger under her chin tilting her head up further and exposing her neck. "Lovely."

Turning around he walked back out of the hall with everyone else too shocked to do or say anything.

That night the girls in Gryffindor had all gathered together in the dorm excitedly that Rose had been asked out by her longtime crush. The other girls were gushing over how dashing Lestrange had made his declaration, although Rose was still blushing from the excitement of Lestrange now going public with their long-standing relationship.

---

Meanwhile Sirius Black was howling up a storm of anger and frustration in the Headmaster's office.

"That no good, graaaagh," Sirius roared and kicked over one of Albus' chairs. "He so much as puts one hand on Rose and I'll go to Azkaban for a murder I will commit."

Remus sighed heavily. "I understand where you are coming from, but we can't just go after him, not directly. Alastor already tried that and Lestrange destroyed two classrooms and an entire stairwell just leading him through the castle."

"Yes, his understanding of the secret passageways is equal to or even surpasses your own," Albus commented while he contemplated just how to regain control of Rose and his school. "No, we cannot simply just try to attack him, if we did so in a crowded location who knows the untold casualties that would come about it."

"But what do we do Albus, Lestrange is making his moves to get closer to Ms. Potter?" Minerva questioned. She was worried for her little lioness, because while a confident young witch she believed Rose was, Lestrange was a predator far more dangerous than anything she's ever encountered before.

"We will have to get him when there is no chance of others getting caught in the crossfire," Alastor chimed in.

"So when will that be? In five minutes, please tell me it's soon," Sirius pleaded.

Albus rapped his fingers along his desk. "No, I can think of only one time we might be able to get to him, but we will need to draw him in and I believe that our earlier guest might have given us the method to tempt him."

---

Rose was fretting over her dress, trying to decide if she needed to have a lower neckline or push up more. While she was busy doing that, the chaser trio were busy working on her hair.

"Rose, Rose, I don't think Stephen is going to care about how much cleavage you show," Hermione tried to reason with her ever increasingly frustrated friend who was busy flicking her wand to adjust the dress with a spell.

"You're only saying that because I don't have enough cleavage to show," Rose hissed.

"Hey hey, your breasts are perfectly fine," Ginny commented, while placing a hand on Rose comfortingly. "They're on the larger size for girls in your year."

"But what if Lestrange wants them huge," Rose complained. "I could try a potion to make them bigger right?"

"I wouldn't recommend that route," Lestrange commented, his sudden voice startling the ladies who were all in various states of dress into screaming. "Calm down, I'm using a temporary blinding spell on myself, if you don't believe me, Granger, here is my wand and three backup wands, you can check them for the spell," passing over the four sticks to the bushy haired witch who performed the reverse spell and found that on the third stick a variation of the Obscuro spell was used.

"Okay so you can't see us," Hermione exhaled in relief.

Smirking at the grumpy witches. "See I can play nice, and I did come here for a reason. But I find that I need to tend to my Rose first. Potter, there is nothing at all wrong with your body, there is nothing about you that I would want to change. I promise you that after all the years together, you are perfect."

Her lip quivered. "Oh Stephen," rushing forward to pull him into a deep embrace. "You always know just what to say."

Lestrange sighed, before motioning with his hands for Granger to give him back his wands. "What can I say, I've always been a hopeless romantic," smirking as he backed up towards the window. "But now I have to go wait for the opportunity to see my lovely date."

Running over to the window and just as she suspected Lestrange was already gone. Leaning on the windowsill, she looked out over the wintery wonderland of the Hogwarts grounds blanketed in snow. "Why'd you have to fall for a bad boy, Rose?"

---

"And here they are, the lovely ladies of the evening," Lestrange grandly announced as the four dates descended the stairs. It certainly was worth the wait in his opinion. Rose's long red hair had been done up in soft curls that framed her face, the subtle make up only served to draw attention everywhere before you noticed her gorgeous eyes.

The dress she wore was a deep shade of red, with just enough of a neckline that one could see the soft mounds on her chest, the way the fabric hugged her waistline and how the heels gave definition to her quite nice backside. "Oh dear me. I feel as if I might simply abduct you here and now," Lestrange chuckled while he looked over his date.

"You would look quite fetching handcuffed to my bed as I slowly peeled each layer off of you as I-"

"AHEM!" Mcgonagall loudly and forcefully cleared her throat. She did not like this one bit at all and had sworn to be a vigilant chaperone for the evening, with the added help of some eager volunteers, eyes would constantly be on this particular pair.

"Ahh Minerva, looking ravishing aren't we," Lestrange grinned slyly at his head of house. "Unfortunately, I already have a lovely date but I'm sure that at some point in the evening I could be pried away from her, however much it would break my heart to be apart from such a scrumptious treat such as her."

"Oh Mr. Lestrange, I'll do," cutting herself off before she let out a highly unprofessional threat towards one of the students. "Just, make sure you keep your hands in appropriate places."

After lining up the four champions, she regretfully led them into the hall for the opening dance where gasps rang out from the crowd. Whispers were going around that Lestrange had asked Rose Potter to the ball but no one really believed that but standing before them was proof to the gossip.

"Look at them all, so utterly entranced by your beauty," Lestrange commented to his date as she blushed on his arm.

"I'm sure it's not that," Rose whispered back even if she loved the compliments he was handing out.

"Well unfortunately for them I am very territorial and should one of them get funny little ideas in their heads," Lestrange smiled devilishly at the crowd, he just knew seeing them together would upset some people.

"No killing people tonight," Rose chastised. "This is about us, not anyone else."

"As you wish my dear," Lestrange chuckled before stepping back and kissing the back of Rose's hand to begin the opening dance. All the while surveying the room for threats, of which a few stuck out to him.

Rose had so many dreams in the last few nights about this moment, where Lestrange would walk her out onto the floor and they would, well she'd never been dancing before so her dreams didn't know what to do in that situation, but everytime they turned quite saucy. Her cheeks burned a fiery red under the lights as she was spun around the room. Everything else was just a blur to her and the only thing left was staring into Stephen's eyes.

After the dance finished upon which Lestrange dipped his date down and grinned across the room at a certain redheaded irritant he lowered his head and planted his lips on the young lady's neck making her shudder at the sensation. But the dance opened the ball for the meal to begin. "So I assume that we will be having these extra wheels for the evening?"

"Try your best to ignore them," Rose sighed, she was doing her best not to look over at Sirius and Remus who were glaring at the back of Lestrange's head. "Cho, Fleur you both look fantastic."

She hoped to try and get some conversation going and complimenting the other two witches would surely accomplish that. "Thank you Rose, your dress is gorgeous where did you get it?"

"Oh we snuck out to London to a muggle shop because the dress robes were so not right," Rose smiled.

Cho gasped at the missed opportunity. "I should have done that, how'd you manage to sneak out?"

"Secret passages in and out of the school, you could ask Fred and George they know most of them. Makes it nice when you have a few hours between classes to sneak down to Hogsmeade or use their floo to go to London when you need to pick up things," Rose smiled, she and Cho had never really gotten along. Their rivalry on the quidditch pitch and that Rose had a small crush on her boyfriend ensured they weren't going to be friends. But this was nice.

"And just what would you need to sneak out for?" Remus chimed in unwantedly, hearing that Rose had left the school without others knowing didn't sit well with him.

"Lady things," Rose quickly and firmly stated while sending a glare at the werewolf for intrusion. "Aren't you supposed to be keeping an eye on the party?"

"We're watching the problem areas," Sirius replied while continuing to glare at the boy who was too close to his goddaughter for his liking.

"Well the Weasley twins just spiked the punch so clearly this is another job you have failed at upholding," Lestrange commented, jabbing Sirius again for his failure as a godfather.

"I will-" Sirius snarled before getting pulled back by Remus.

"Not here, not now" the werewolf hissed.

Turning his attention back to Rose he pulled out a bottle of wine from his suit that he had Kreacher get for him from some rich muggles cellar, it wasn't likely to be noticed for some time and no one would ever know it was him. "Here, some wine, a good vintage."

"Mr. Lestrange I am going to have to confiscate that," Minerva grinned at the thought of putting the kibosh on some unruly behavior.

"Hardly see why, the only three who are underage here are Granger, Chang and myself. I'm not offering to them and you know I don't respect the law," Lestrange shrugged while pouring a small glass for Rose. "Not too much though."

"Ms. Potter is underage," Minerva hissed and snatched at the bottle but failed to take it out of Lestrange's hand.

"No she's not, the Ministry declared her of age the moment they didn't pull her out of the tournament which is restricted to only of age witches and wizards, that our illustrious headmaster's own age line failed to stop her entrance, really only confirms that Rose here must be of age, otherwise he could have easily removed her from the tournament since underage witches and wizards cannot be a part of a contract."

Lestrange smirked as the shock appeared on the faces of the other champions that something could have easily been done to remove the extra champion from the competition. "Of course Bartemius Crouch Senior also knew this detail as he had written the contract the ministry used, but then again we both know who impersonated Moody earlier this year, so his agreeableness is obviously not a factor. Still it would simply have taken her guardian getting the Chief Warlock to declare the contract null and she would have been free and clear. Oh but wait."

"Those are the same people, until this mongrel could finish his rehab, the old codger was the one who acts in loco parentis for our young maiden here. So he would have just had to say the words, this contract involving Rose Lily Potter is void. But it's not like he's ever had to nullify magical contracts before and wouldn't know how to, not like it's his job to do so."

The three chaperones who had tasked themselves with keeping a watchful eye on Lestrange now looked like they sucked a lemon. "At least now Rose here is her own woman, a fully fledged adult, able to leave this magical world behind as soon as the contract is over, free to go missing one day all because one man wanted to play the long game," Lestrange smirked before turning back to his date. "Would you like another glass, it is a good vintage?"

"You are such an ass," Rose giggled at how Lestrange slapped down the people around him. It really was funny even if being done to the people she cared about, getting to watch him rile others up was enjoyable.

"And you have such a great ass," Lestrange purred while snaking his hand down Rose's back. Just before contact which would definitely end with Sirius throwing curses at him, he stopped and rose from his seat. "Would you care for another dance?"

"I would love to," Rose smiled and waved to Hermione who was still in shock at just how much Lestrange knew and how effectively he wielded that information against others. Even after being let in on the secret that Lestrange had been helping Rose for years she didn't realize the extent of his cunning.

"So Rosie," Angelina spoke up after directing her date towards the dancing pair. At some point Fred had switched with George, but she and Alicia knew that would happen eventually. "Is it everything you dreamed of?"

"It's wonderful," Rose sighed while resting her head on Lestrange's shoulder for the slow dance.

"And I promise it will only get better, once we can get somewhere private," Lestrange replied while nipping the girl's ear to cause her to squeal.

Apparently that was what caused the fight.

As not a few seconds later Ron Weasley was trying to barge his way onto the dance floor. "I can't believe you, I thought we were good," Ron shouted at Rose who looked confused why she was being yelled at.

"We are, I don't understand?" Rose questioned just where this hostility was coming from.

"You don't understand?! I apologize and then instead of going to the ball with me, you take this son of a bitch," Ron pointed accusingly at Lestrange. "And then Hermione ditched us for the enemy."

Hearing her name, Hermione got up from the table to go investigate the argument, which meant Viktor needed go along with and hearing the loud voice of a Weasley, Cedric and Cho wanted to see just what was happening. Fleur's date was so out of it that she simply went because it would clearly be more interesting than watching a boy drool.

"Ron you never asked either of us," Rose countered as more and more people started to crowd around to see the fight.

"Because I didn't need to you both were mine, only this sack of crap doesn't respect anything and Krum is foreign so he didn't know who already had dibs," Ron shouted down at Rose who looked so unsure of what to do.

"Yours?" Hermione moved to get involved only to be pulled back by Viktor who shook his head and nodded in the direction of Lestrange who discreetly drew a knife behind his back.

Being so worked up Ron couldn't hear that it had been Hermione who spoke and not Rose. "Yeah, after all these years. Helping you with the troll, the stone, killing the basilisk and rescuing you from your relatives. You turn around and choose him, like a slag." jabbing a finger at Lestrange who was nonchalantly holding a knife in plain view of the crowd. But Ron wasn't looking and kept yelling at Rose.

Rose motioned for Stephen to put away the blade, which shockingly to the other students he did. "Ron I can't, I don't even know how you can think that, I didn't choose him over you." She wanted to explain to her friend just how wrong he was but she was too hurt and instead ran out of the Great Hall in tears.

"Right it all makes sense now, he's controlling you. What did you do to her you bastard, drugs, spells, what are you doing to my Rose?" Ron demanded to know only to be cut off by a hand gripping his throat painfully tight.

"Weasleys come take care of him before you lose a brother tonight, this is his last warning. Next time I will kill him," Lestrange warned. "He has used up whatever goodwill he had."

Shoving the pissed off redhead into his older brothers, Ron moved to try and start a fight only to be dragged away, Mcgonagall running over and looking furious. Lestrange instead straightened his clothes out, "Well I am needed elsewhere. So I shall take my leave."

---

Lestrange began the process of following Rose's tracks through the snow until he found her in the hedges sitting on a bench bawling her eyes out.

"Rose," Lestrange sighed as he approached his sobbing date. "Rose."

Heaving his shoulders he knew he would need to do something more dramatic so he started to sing. It was from a muggle movie that Rose had convinced him to go to with her, Hermione wasn't all that interested in comic book heroes and had declined to go, but Rose loved superheroes mostly because those were some of the few things Dudley had to read and she wondered if she could be like them. She teased him the entire time after that if he just wore a cowl and cape, he would be a young Batman.

But he turned that around on her and asked if she would be his Catwoman and wear very tight latex suits. Still she really enjoyed having the chance to spend time with him that the movie left a bit of an impression on her. Hearing his voice carry across the quiet winter air made her look up to see him trying to serenade her.

"I never knew you could sing?" Rose asked after he stopped.

Lestrange shrugged and sat down next to her on the bench. "I like music."

"Do you play any instruments?" She had never seen this side of him before. She thought she knew everything about him but there was always something else underneath the layers.

"A few, I spent years learning the classics like the piano and violin but it's not too useful in helping you stay alive so I mostly just practice on my own time."

"Would you play something for me next time you see one?" Rose asked because she wanted to know just how good he was.

"If that is what you want," Lestrange smiled. "I'm going to kill Weasley if he ever talks to you like that again and I won't stop even if you ask me to. He's gone too far this time."

"Please don't, I know he's an idiot but he doesn't deserve to die for it," Rose argued.

"After everything you've done for the castle and everything you've sacrificed he still has the gall to act as though you are the one indebted to him," Lestrange scoffed. "He and everyone else in that castle would be dead if not for you."

"You would have saved them still, I know you." Rose smiled and leaned against Lestrange's body.

"Maybe a few, but I'm not you, I would have done what I could and left the rest to their own devices," Lestrange chuckled. "You're so much better of a person than I am."

"I think you still would have done it," Rose reiterated. "So how come we aren't being swarmed by other people? I'm sure Sirius or Remus would have chased after me."

"I cast a spell to erase your tracks and put a sensory disruption charm on the hedges when I came in here so anyone trying to follow would get turned around. I didn't think you'd want to have them breathing down your neck right now."

"Thank you," Rose smiled and wiped her face. "My makeup is ruined."

"Ehh, I still think you look good," Lestrange shrugged and pulled out a handkerchief, offering its usage to the witch to clean herself up. "Eventually we'll have to go back."

"Or you could just abduct me like you keep telling them you would," Rose teased while rubbing her face with the cloth.

"If I truly believed you would be happy leaving this all behind, you wouldn't even realize we were gone until I had you on a warm, sunny beach," Lestrange answered while standing.

Rose was just finishing getting her ruined mascara off her cheeks when she saw the outstretched hand and heard music beginning to play. "I believe that our dance was rudely interrupted."

"Stephen," taking his hand in hers and leaning into his chest while they swayed slowly.

"I love you Rose," Stephen confessed. "I know I don't say it enough and you don't hear it enough but I love you, you are loved. You are worth loving. You deserve so much love."

Rose just pulled him in tighter between her arms.

It was an hour later that the two separated and Rose stared up into Lestrange's eyes. "Kiss me now," she ordered for Lestrange who eagerly complied.

---

When they finally returned to the Great Hall the party had sadly broken up, apparently Ron acting a fool had soured the evening for a lot of people, so Lestrange just walked Rose back up to the common room where a few couples were still awake and sitting by the fire or in their own little corners.

It looked like Ronald was going to come over but likely due to a spell he wasn't able to leave McGonagall's side so he just glared at Lestrange as the wizard walked her over to the stairwell.

"Are you going to come up with me?" Rose asked, knowing that the charms that would prevent the boys from getting into their dorms wouldn't stop him.

"Maybe another night, when it's more crowded just to see people panic that I can circumvent the rules. But I promise I won't be going out tonight and I'll stay in the dorm, so you can find me whenever you want," leaning forward he planted his lips onto Rose and pulled her in tightly to his body. "Goodnight Rose."

"Night," Rose squeaked and scurried up the steps to her dorm where she could hopefully trade stories with some of the other girls.

Turning a baleful gale towards the redhead grumpily standing next to the older witch. "Weasley, we are to have words." Lestrange stormed over to the angry redhead.

"Mr. Lestrange, I am currently-" Minerva started before she was cut off.

"If you ever try to pull some crap like that again, to get in my way. You will be lucky to receive what I did to Bagman, a shallow unmarked grave in the Forbidden Forest. Your death at my hands will be slow and agonizing and your family will be forced to see your mangled remains after I ritualistically display your corpse for them. So next time you get some funny little idea in your head about who Rose belongs to, don't."

"Professor he's threatening to kill me, I should be allowed to do something about this," Ron complained to McGonagall..

"I am not threatening, I am promising, you will not see another day if you keep up this attitude towards Potter," Lestrange warned. "The only reason you still draw breath is because she did not want me to spill blood today, so you will at least have until sunrise to decide if you wish to remain among the living. If you don't, I can easily arrange for that to change."

Turning with a flourish, Lestrange made for the stairs to the boys dormitory, while he might not sleep there he did keep some belongings that he could occupy his time with.

---

Coming down to the Great Hall the next morning Rose could see many couples still cuddling together, and a fair distance away surprisingly surrounded by some of the girls in the dorm was Lestrange, who was picking at his breakfast. Putting some extra energy in her step she walked over and sat herself down next to him.

Lestrange rolled his eyes at her antics and wrapped an arm around her. "So I take it you all had a fun night?" Rose asked because Hermione was still sitting next to Viktor, Ginny had dragged over Neville who was doing his best to not look at Lestrange, Angelina and Alica had brought over Fred and George, which meant Lee and Katie were with them as well.

"Despite my idiot brother's interruptions the ball was fantastic," Ginny answered while rubbing her date's shoulder to try and get him to engage in the conversation. "He's really not that bad."

"I wouldn't try Weasley, Longbottom has every right to hate me and I am as bad as he thinks," Lestrange commented. "That's why I just leave him alone."

"I always did wonder why you left him alone?" Lee questioned, because most everyone got it in some fashion from Lestrange, but now at least he knew why Rose was never a target. But the Longbottom situation had been something he wondered about, the other pureblood families however didn't say anything as it wasn't exactly a secret what Bellatrix had done to the infamous Frank and Alice Longbottom.

"That's for him to say and you to shut up," Lestrange warned. "I leave him be until he's decided for himself what he wants to do about me."

"And what exactly would I even be able to do?" Neville seethed angrily, he had been able to handle Lestrange in the castle because they were rarely within five feet of each other. But now he was trying to pretend that they were friends all because Ginny wanted to sit with her friends and in his mind he didn't understand how Lestrange became a part of that group.

"Free shot, whenever you want, whatever spell you want. Killing curse included," Lestrange answered flatly before taking a sip of his juice. "No one would fault you for it and the professors might even help cover up any crime you committed in that action. I know what my mother did and I'm not going to try to make excuses."

Neville just took a few deep breaths before going back to his breakfast, because for years he's been thinking of ways to avenge his parents and he always hesitated out of fear because he doubted he would be able to do anything and this entire time he's had free reign to attack and never knew.

Lestrange sighed heavily and drew a very large and intimidating knife and rested the tip of the blade on the table top. "I'm giving him ten seconds," Lestrange turned his head to watch the approaching redhead. "Either he apologizes or someone needs to get him away, I will do it."

"So Ron do you have anything you wanted to say to me?" Rose raised an eyebrow and hoped the redhead had a good excuse for making an ass out of himself last night.

Ron looked at Rose then Lestrange. "I'm going to save you from him," he said and then turned away.

Lestrange pulled the knife free and lunged only to get pulled back by Viktor Krum who was still a physically fit man with fast enough reflexes to stop the dark wizard from eviscerating the other in such a crowded place. "I will gut him."

"Thanks Viktor," Hermione sighed in relief and pecked the famous seeker on the cheek. "Okay we need to keep those two apart until Ron can pull his head out of his ass. Because while Ron has been a bonehead this year, I don't want to see him dead and Lestrange is clearly not joking."

"I will, I've killed twenty-seven people this year and I still have a few days left to get that number up."

"Twenty-seven?" Katie gasped at the sudden confession. "I haven't even heard of that many people being murdered in the paper."

"Ehh, most of the ones I do on the magical side I make look like suicides or accidents, but I do get the majority of my kills in the muggle world," Lestrange answered.

"Who are you killing in the muggle world?" Fred wondered just what atrocities their deranged underclassman was committing.

"People who notice too much, information brokers, arms dealers when I need things that I can't get from the shops here. Other times I just go kill a few people for fun," Lestrange replied while finishing his breakfast. "Don't worry, I make sure they deserve it, muggles have no occlumency barriers so I can see who has done some fucked up things and then hurt them for it."

"Last year was fun, I needed to blow off a lot of steam so I went out to prisons and just offed inmates. I swear it's like a whole different crime when you're choking the life out of a pedophile," Lestrange promised. "Muggle prisons have no way to stop magicals from getting in and doing whatever they wanted to the inmate and the guards don't believe the cellmates saying that a boy snuck in, paralyzed them and then strangled a person in front of them before making it look like they hanged themselves."

"Probably why you get a lot of cold cases since they're actually muggleborns who decided they could get away with a lot of a crimes because if the police aren't clued into magic then they don't know what to look for or even who to pass things onto, it's a rare sight for the case to end up on the desk of MI-5, they get maybe one percent of the magical crimes committed and they just turn them over to the DMLE."

"And those cases are lucky to get put in the hands of an auror who actually cares about arresting the criminal, like my dear sweet cousin Nymphadora, otherwise it just gets sent to an obliviation squad and the witch or wizard just gets a talking to about not getting caught the next time."

Looking around the table at the horror of real crimes being explained to them by someone who actively commits them, Lestrange tilted his head. "Not a single one of you ever considered the ease at which you could break the law and never be punished for it just for having magic did you?"

"Only those raised by muggles have birth certificates or any records at all, we don't exist so trying to find us is near impossible and even if they do, wards, invisibility, imperious, obliviation, there are so many ways we have to escape any consequence of our actions," Lestrange laughed.

"Honestly I've always wondered how the Weasleys were a poor family, a few spells and you have gold, jewelry and sacks full of pounds that you can just exchange it for galleons. Dye packs, hah, vanish the ink." He continued to chuckle at his inside joke.

"You've done that, haven't you?" Ginny finally said because he was clearly speaking from experience.

"An entire armored truck full of money. Hit it right before the depot, obliviated the workers, erased it from the ledgers and they were left scratching their heads as to why a truck that was supposed to have two million pounds in it just disappeared."

"For the record I did that when I was nine," Lestrange explained to the group. "Now I'm a little advanced," he said for fairness only to hear Rose snort back a laugh. "Hush now. But any fourth year student could pull off what I did."

"Please keep the amount of crimes you commit to a minimum," Rose implored because she did not want to see her boyfriend get arrested for the things he absolutely did.

"Fine, I'll tone it down," Lestrange rolled his eyes. "I won't steal something unless I really need it, or I want it."

Rose giggled at his antics while everyone else was just shocked into silence. "What's occlumency?" Granger finally asked.

Lestrange just grinned and turned to the witch. "Well my brunette brainiac, occlumency is the magical art of protecting one's mind from legilimency, something I taught to Rose years ago to make sure people stayed out of her head."

"The follow up is that legilimency is the art of reading the minds of people you make eye contact with, a skill I am rather proficient in, and use frequently to gather information, because even if a mind was protected, the minds of people around them are unlikely to be, so many secrets in this school overheard by others."

"Can you use it in other ways?" Hermione inquired because this was a delightfully interesting topic and one that wouldn't upset her to hear, like how Lestrange murdered over two dozen people this year.

"Oh yes you can, see if you're taking a test and don't know the answer but a certain nerdy girl does, you just slam the top of the desk to make her glare at you giving you access to her memories and get the answers that way, so you can get a perfect score without trying," Lestrange smiled and waited for the eruption.

"YOU! LESTRANGE!" Hermione screamed when she realized that Lestrange had been cheating in classes they shared. "You get back here and suffer the consequences for what you have done!"

Lestrange cackled madly as he hopped off the bench and ran out of the hall with Hermine chasing after him across the lawn, throwing hex and curse at him that he deflected harmlessly. It made for an entertaining display that others in the castle could laugh at.

---

"Hey uh, Rose, I uh wanted to see if you had figured out the golden egg yet or not," Cedric came up to the redheaded witch who was sitting with her housemates.

"No I haven't yet," Rose answered the older wizard's question. "But I think we're close to figuring it out without Stephen telling us the answer."

"Well since you helped me I feel like I need to return the favor, have you tried taking a bath with it?" Cedric asked.

"What?" Rose's face turned beet red at the implication of her needing to bathe with the egg.

"Are you making a pass at what is mine?" Lestrange questioned the older wizard who dared to talk about Rose bathing. "Because I've killed people for less."

"Lestrange you've killed people for a candy bar," Angelina rolled her eyes.

"Not untrue," Stephen replied. "But still, does pretty boy over here think about Rose bathing often, because I might just need to correct that behavior."

"No, no, no I don't," Cedric quickly responded.

"Good because what I do to you would be less cruel than me telling Chang about this conversation," Lestrange smiled at the older wizard.

Cedric gaped and realized that Lestrange would clearly misinterpret what he was trying to do. "You're a monster."

Rose banished Lestrange off the pony wall he had been resting on. "Ignore him, so you're telling me to put the egg underwater then?"

"Yeah, the prefects bathroom is a good place as the lake but it's not, you know freezing cold," Cedric clarified.

"Cool, we'll take her up there tonight," Katie offered as she and Alicia were Gryffindor prefects.

"And don't worry Lestrange won't bother you with how you tried to help me, he's mostly just riling you up for his own amusement," Rose assured the Hufflepuff champion that his girlfriend wasn't going to hear about this.

---

Later that night the girls were headed up to the prefects bath carrying their towels and the egg with them as they chatted happily. Stepping into the prefects bathroom they stopped upon seeing that the room was already occupied. Lestrange was relaxing in the steaming water, talking animatedly with Moaning Myrtle who looked far too pleased to be next to him. "Oh we have company, hello ladies."

"What are you doing here, how did you get in here, why are you here?" The girls said over each other.

"I'm relaxing, honestly this is a fantastic way to unwind, you prefects have it made in here, beats the showers hands down," Lestrange rolled his shoulders. "Again most of the students haven't practiced occlumency even once so I have the passwords for pretty much every door and where they are. And well, I had hoped only Rose would show up. I had plans to seduce her but I guess I will have to put a lid on that. Let me just transfigure some trunks."

"You're naked?!" The girls squeaked as the bubbles had done their job hiding what was beneath the water but if he was talking about needing to put on a bathing suit then it must mean he wasn't wearing anything.

"Who wears clothes in the bathtub?" Lestrange raised an eyebrow before starting to rise out of the water.

"No don't," Ginny quickly shouted and covered her eyes.

"I don't see what the problem is," Myrtle giggled and stuck her head under the water. "It's really nice to look at."

"You're saying that because you are biased you horny little voyeur," Lestrange teased and sat back down.

"So right now you really are," Rose gulped and stared directly towards Lestrange's crotch. "Nude."

"Oh ho, does my little bud wish to see what is in store for her?" Lestrange teased as he stretched back revealing to the witches that he took great care of his body. "A bit of a spoiler for the future perhaps."

Hermione was the one to act first and started to shove the girls towards a locker room off to the side. "We're going to change, don't you dare peek and put on some clothes before we come out."

"Spoilsport," Lestrange shouted but waited until the girls were behind the barrier before calling out to his house elf. "Kreacher, a bathing suit, seems that I have more than just Potter tonight."

"Kreacher does as the master commands," the house elf bowed before returning with black swimsuit.

"It would have been nice to be alone with Rose, so hard to find the time since everyone here had been so protective of her and now that we can be more open everyone wants to 'hang out' all the time." Lestrange griped to the elf who helped raise him when he was little, which might explain how he turned out the way that he did.

"Young Master could get rid of them," Kreacher suggested with a cackle.

"Can't do that, Rose likes those friends of hers, and I unfortunately have a difficult time denying her small things like that." Lestrange lamented that he was too much of a softy when it came to Rose's happiness.

"You are too kind and generous Young Master," Kreacher shook his head. "Half-blood not good enough for the Master."

"Do remember that I am one of those Half-bloods as well," Lestrange chastised the house elf for slipping back into his old fanatical ways. "I believe I will just need a tray of refreshments for the night and that will be all, and remember to not speak of how you help me to Lord Black."

"If the filthy lord does not know to ask, Kreacher does not speak Young Master," Kreacher bowed before drinks and light snacks appeared on a platter outside the splash zone of the tub.

"Thank you old friend," Lestrange smiled as he settled in and waited for the ladies to return.

As he expected most of the girls were in traditional one piece bathing suits with only Katie coming out in a bikini, but then he saw Ginny and he couldn't help but laugh. She was in a gaudy red Victorian era swimsuit and Lestrange had to hold onto the edge of the tub so as not to fall over into the water. "Where did you even find that?" wheezing at the sight of the ginger girl blushing from head to toe.

"Please tell me your mother doesn't actually make you wear that if you go down to the local watering hole?" Lestrange implored but when the girl blushed harder. "That's so cruel, I should be getting lessons on torture from Molly."

"Stephen," Rose hissed because she knew Ginny was embarrassed by how conservatively Molly required her daughter to dress. But it wasn't too harsh of a chastisement as Rose had laughed when she first saw it over the summer because she thought it was a prank at first and the twins had gotten to her.

Lestrange took a few deep breaths. "Oh I'm sorry Weasley, that was too funny, let me make it up to you," flicking his wand around and transfiguring the mass of fabric into a much more form fitting bathing suit from this decade. "There, is that better?"

"Thank you," Ginny sighed because this wasn't the first time she had someone laugh at her bathing suit that her mom made her wear. Unfortunately she couldn't transfigure it herself since she couldn't use magic outside of school, her mother certainly wasn't going to do it and she would be caught dead before asking her older brothers who weren't underage to make her swimsuit sexier. Then when she was up in Hogwarts there wasn't much of a reason to wear it so it just ended up in the bottom of her trunk each year.

"I figured you would like something that didn't make you look like a child," Lestrange nodded before flicking his wand at Rose's swim suit and making it a much more scandalous sling bikini. "But this is for me."

Rose squealed and covered herself. "Stephen," exclaiming in panic at the little bit of fabric left on her person.

"Sorry Rose, but you are too sexy to hide away from me," Lestrange purred then he patted the water. "So come on over here."

Grumbling about how stupid and sexy Lestrange was Rose lowered herself into the steamy water with the other girls joining her. "This is really nice though," Rose sagged her shoulders into the water feeling the tension leave her body.

"I definitely hope I get picked as prefect for next year," Hermione almost moaned because this was leagues better than a hot shower.

Lestrange chuckled as he watched the girls splash about, truly there was a special kind of magic in watching girls in swimsuits play fight in the water. "Should we get the egg done now or do you want some time to relax?" Lestrange said while discreetly casting a charm that would make Rose float over to him.

"Just a few more minutes then we can do it, the water's not going anywhere," Rose hummed before feeling two hands start to massage her shoulders. That felt heavenly to her so she leaned into the touch, letting the hands roam her body pressing and molding her aching muscles. "That feels… so good," she said breathlessly, the rest of the world fading away and leaving only the sound of her breathing and the splashing of the water.

"That must be some massage Lestrange," Alicia suddenly spoke up very loudly near Rose's head, startling her back to reality.

She looked around and saw all her friends staring at her with different reactions from knowing smirks to shock and then she felt a hand press on her thigh and she slammed her legs shut and let out a loud moan. "Wait," she called out and turned her head to look back at Lestrange. "You can't keep going in front of them."

"Why not, they seem to be enjoying the show," Lestrange teased while turning her head back to see that the girls were all giggling at her. "Not everyday they get to watch their friend become my plaything."

"I wasn't," Rose denied and hid her cheeks in the water.

"Please, I want to have a go at that, you looked like you were ten seconds away from a total release when I woke you up," Angelina chimed in. "So Lestrange what's it gonna cost for you to be my masseur?"

"Me? Charge to be able to rub oil all over your naked body until you turn into easily pliable mush?" Lestrange laughed. "I'll have to check with this one here first if she's willing to share."

"Later, maybe later," Rose kept herself quiet because she was damn sure if the other girls weren't here, Lestrange would have gotten her in the water naked and if he had done that, she would not have stopped him doing whatever else he wanted to her body.

"I believe that translates to, after he ravishes my body I might consider loaning him out," Lestrange chuckled and hugged Rose to his chest. "But sadly we came here for business, not pleasure. So let's figure out this egg and maybe I can go back to touching you inappropriately while they all watch."

"Ass," Rose muttered but then swam to the side of the pool to get the egg and tossed it in the water. "Well, it's not doing anything?" Then as one the girls stuck their heads underneath the water and then they heard the voices.

"They're going to take what I will sorely miss?" Rose questioned just what the song threatened.

"Where our voices sound, so underwater, but the only place big enough with water would be the lake," Hermione tilted her head.

"Mermaids, they live in the black lake," Katie answered.

"So I have an hour to find whatever they take from me in the Black Lake?" Rose figured. "But what would I most sorely miss, my wand, no I need that for the task. My Firebolt, it was a gift from Sirius, maybe my Cloak but that's the only thing I have left of my dad so I'd really want that back."

"Rose don't be ridiculous, the first task was going to pit you against a nesting mother dragon without any warning," Lestrange cut in. "So what would be something the judges could do that is wildly irresponsible and dangerous that could get not only you and the other champions killed but innocent bystanders as well?"

"Merlin they are going to take people!" Ginny exclaimed to the confused girls. "It's the only thing that makes sense, they take a hostage that you have to rescue in one hour under the lake and if you don't then that person will likely drown or the mermaids will kill them."

"That's so stupid though, which makes it the perfect task to do," Alicia sighed and rubbed her temples. "This tournament is giving me a headache."

"Well who would they take then that I would most sorely miss?" Rose wondered before all the girls stared flatly at her. "What?"

"Really girl, if there was anyone in the world who means the most to you, it's that boy over there," Katie shook her head.

Rose bit her lip. "Well yeah but… do you think they would, I mean, if he was taken."

"Like they could," Lestrange disagreed. "To make you feel better, I won't be a part of it, so they'll probably just dunk Black into the lake, giving it an ironic name and his first bath since he was put in Azkaban, the castle will smell like wet dog for the rest of the year."

Hermione couldn't help but snort in amusement at the derision against Sirius, she liked the guy but this was too funny. Her laughing made the rest of the girls bust up.

"I think Longbottom might actually be of some help in this one, there's bound to be a magical plant that can help you," Lestrange suggested.

"Why not the bubblehead charm?" Angelina questioned because she had used it when she went vacationing with her parents at the beach a few years back.

"Go ahead," Lestrange motioned for the girl to demonstrate. As soon as she did and her head was under the water Lestrange poked the bubble with his finger, popping it and then Angelina panicked for a second before coming back up. "And that was when you weren't in a pitch black lake hundreds of meters below the surface full of whatever dangerous threat the morons running this thing fill it with."

"Okay I see your point," the chaser coughed and admitted defeat, if something like poking the bubble could screw Rose up then that would be a terrible spell to rely on.

"Don't worry, while you figure out if Longbottom can help you, we'll work on flame charms," Lestrange said while grabbing his wand.

"Uhh, she's going to be underwater, fire doesn't work," Ginny questioned just what Lestrange was thinking, surely he meant something else.

"You are correct, it doesn't, but you'll want to get out of the water for this one trust me," Lestrange responded while a funny look got on his face, the girls not seeing that before scurrying to get out of the pool.

Unfortunately they couldn't hear what spell he cast but a massive eruption of bubbles and boiling water rose to the surface of the pool and the entire room filled with steam. "Fire doesn't work, but it makes boiling water and that's just as good," Lestrange said as he pulled himself out of the water.

Then he noticed the girls were staring at him in shock. "What?" Lestrange raised an eyebrow and then looked down to see his trunks were sticking to his thigh and showing off a part of his anatomy. "Yeah, that's mine."

"Are they supposed to be that big?" Ginny asked the older girls who just made a sound similar to a pinched balloon. "Rose? Rose? Rose?!"

"Well this has been a good night for my ego," Lestrange smirked while wrapping a towel around his waist, blocking the view of his tight swimsuit from the gaze of the witches who once line of sight was broken seemed to come to their senses. "But it is getting late and even prefects can't be out this late without good reason."

"Right we need to go, if we hurry no one will notice us," Katie nodded and the girls hurried to get their stuff before exiting the bathroom with Lestrange strolling out after whistling a jaunty tune.

---

Somehow though the Daily Prophet told a tale of debauchery and sin, how Stephen Lestrange had through dark magic seduced six young, innocent maidens into his devilish clutches before having his way with their young nubile bodies in the prefect bathroom that he clearly broken into. It contained speculation from Rita Skeeter on just how he accomplished such a task and if any girls in the school were safe from him deflowering them forcefully.

The girls were horrified that somehow the Daily Prophet had learned of their late night trip to the baths and were using it to imply they had all been in some sex crazed orgy.

"We should have done that," Lestrange shook his head sadly while reading the paper.

"Don't encourage the rumors," Rose swatted Stephen on the arm as she looked around and could see the other girls were busy explaining what had really happened to their current partners, but it seemed like Lee and Longbottom weren't going to be convinced and Krum seemed hesitant. Fred and George looked frustrated but did follow Angelina and Alicia back to the table without storming off.

"But Rose I'm a ravenous monster with a taste for virgin witches, an insatiable beast who doesn't understand the concept of no and would force myself on any hapless girl who had the misfortune of being caught unawares," Lestrange smiled at what he saw as hilarious insults.

"We already have half the castle believing that you put me under a spell, we don't need them thinking you're doing it to more girls," Rose looked at how Lestrange was getting glared at by so many, it was a wonder he didn't burst into flames at the intensity.

"Let them, they're stupid sheep anyway," Lestrange shrugged. "But I'll tone things down to help with the rumors. Skeeter should count herself lucky I am currently occupied with other projects or else I would be devoting some of my time to hunt her down."

"Oh what's on your schedule for today?" Katie asked, since she had been clued into what Lestrange was really like, his habits were suddenly far more interesting rather than scary. Still a little scary though.

"I need to get a picnic basket prepared and go visit my mother," Lestrange said while standing up from the table. "A shame that Black won't be there, I would like to laugh at him from the otherside of the bars again."

"But your mother is in Azkaban," Ginny questioned.

Lestrange nodded. "Of course, but the prison doesn't disallow visitors, they just don't get them often. And I'm a bit of a regular." Heading over towards the head table. Others watched him speak to Sirius Black, causing the other man to lunge over the table and have to be pulled back by Remus Lupin.

"Rose, I promise that I'll be back in the morning to see you perform in your second task, so don't wait up for me." Lestrange said to the girls as he sauntered past before picking up the basket that was waiting for him at the end of the table.

---

"Hello mother," Stephen cheerfully greeted his mother who looked up from her cell. "I'm sorry I couldn't come on Christmas, but I had to take a lovely young lady to the Yule Ball."

"Sweetie," Bellatrix cooed. "You had a date, ooooh tell me how it went."

Stephen passed the food through the bars of the cell while he regaled her with the story. "And you didn't kill the Weasel boy?"

"I would have but my date simply didn't want me to further ruin the evening, the prat had done that enough for everyone else." Stephen smiled while he watched his mother tear into the meat, bread and cheese before greedily downing the bottle of wine.

"The Dark Lord is returning," Bellatrix chimed in and showed off her dark mark which had gained much vibrancy in the last months since he'd seen her. "Soon he will be back and we can put the world as it should be."

"I'm aware mother," Lestrange sighed and shook his head. "I assume when he comes for you, you will go with him?"

"Of course, with the Dark Lord back we will take over." Bellatrix exhaled happily and leaned back after gorging on the good food that her son brought her.

"You should run instead. His time has come and gone," Stephen tried to urge his mother into doing something else instead. Over the years he thought he had started to make headway on getting her to give up on Voldemort and to simply leave the country, but seemingly with his return on the horizon, breaking her out now would only push her further into his grasp.

"Don't worry my sweetness," Bellatrix cooed through the bars and reached for her baby boy.

Lestrange hesitated for a moment before leaning into the touch. "Why have women always been my weakness?" complaining mostly to himself.

"Because you're a hopeless romantic," Bellatrix giggled and held onto her son, the only person who ever visited her since her incarceration.

---

It was always exhausting to come back from Azkaban since he would be spending hours with his mother. He wasn't allowed to cast spells in the prison and until he was ready to break his mother out he would abide by that rule, so there was no patronus to fend off the effects of the dementors.

That might be why against his better judgment he followed whoever was impersonating Mad-Eye again. "Barty if you forgot my threat to you, then sadly I will not be repeating it. You will just die."

He came to a disused part of the castle when he noticed that it wasn't just the fake Moody waiting for him. "So that's what this was, an ambush." Turning his gaze from the Fake Moody, to see that it wasn't just the Headmaster lying in wait for him, Sirius Black, Remus Lupin, Minerva McGonagall and the real Mad-Eye had come from all directions to cut off escape routes. "You know if you were all that insistent on me being Rose's hostage, you could have just asked."

"Unfortunately you misunderstand why we have come for you Mister Lestrange," Albus said in his typical grandfatherly way as he drew his wand, the other adults mirroring his action.

Lestrange tilted his head curiously. "I guess so. Then I take it, you are here to try and put me down?"

"No Mr. Lestrange, we need information from you. We need to know how you are helping Voldemort," Albus answered while raising his wand.

"Helping? That's adorable," Lestrange laughed before holding his arms out. "Alright then, do your worst."

The spells flew and struck at once, and Lestrange's unresponsive body fell to the stone floor. The adults cautiously approached his prone form and then Remus nudged him with a foot. "We got him," the werewolf turned his head to the others.

"Good, then I can do this," Sirius growled before slamming his foot into Lestrange's face, the sound of the teen's nose breaking and his head whipping to the side leaving a trail of blood on the stone.

"Sirius Black," Minerva chastised her former student and pulled him away from the teen.

"You read that drivel by Skeeter, if even a little bit of it is true the boy probably did unspeakable things to those girls and he deserves far worse," Sirius protested being stopped from beating up Lestrange.

"You will have your chance Black for petty vengeance," Severus said as he felt the polyjuice wear off. "Lestrange will not break so easily."

"Quickly we must get him secured away before he awakens or anyone notices," Dumbledore ordered for Sirius and Remus to begin moving Lestrange out of sight and into an unused classroom.

---

Rose looked all over the common room for Lestrange. "He said he would be here when he got back?" grabbing her broom to check up in the rafters.

Hermione let out a yawn and pulled Rose back to the ground when she circled the room again. "He's probably just down getting breakfast. Something we should do before you have to go jump in a freezing lake."

Rose followed Hermione down to the Great Hall. "Okay but what if he is my hostage to rescue, I mean… the teachers could have jumped him and forced him into it maybe."

Hermione just pawed around for something to wake her up and waved off the concern of her redheaded friend. "I doubt that, if anything, he probably thought it would be funny to be a hostage and has some prank ready to humiliate the judges," giving her reasoning for why Lestrange would do something like not be present. Even after some months of knowing he was different, she still had a hard time seeing him as anything other than the creepy boy she knew the last few years. "If not, he'll be there in the stands with us."

It was nerve wracking to not know where Lestrange was. Standing with the other champions on the floating platform on the lake, Rose looked into the stands. "Where is he?"

"Looking for your boy toy?" Fleur teased before pointing to the waters. "Maybe he is down there."

"I hope so," Rose responded then started to listen to Dumbledore explain the task.

Taking in the gillyweed that Neville suggested she use, and that the chasers had purchased for her, Rose dove into the water and then started to cast charms on herself to ease her mobility and keep her warm.

It was a mostly uneventful swim as there weren't too many obstacles in her way and Moaning Myrtle had come to guide her along a safer path. 'Oh you can't be serious,' Rose thought to herself as she treaded water and looked over the different hostages. 'Hermione and Cho I get, and that's probably Fleur's sister, but RON!'

With a snarl she approached the hostages and waited for the other champions to arrive. Cedric wasn't that far behind her so she wasn't waiting long for him to arrive and take Cho back up with him to the surface.

---

"Is this really the best you can all muster," Lestrange sputtered a laugh through the blood dripping from his mouth. "And here I thought you really wanted to know what I was doing to Rose?"

Sirius roared angrily and shot a bludgeoning hex directly into his cousin's face, snapping it back painfully. "Shut UP!" the former prisoner demanded.

"Not getting anywhere with love taps like that," Lestrange snickered before looking around the room of assembled adults through his non-swollen shut eye. "How about someone who isn't afraid to really do what's necessary."

"We are, you are just an insufferable piece of shit," Remus swore angrily.

Letting out a puff of air that pushed some of his sweat soaked hair away from his forehead. "I'm insufferable, that's rich coming from the moron who not even a year ago almost ate the one person in the school he shouldn't have, all because he was too dumb to take his medicine."

Remus growled angrily at being reminded of how badly he almost screwed up the prior year. "Or was that your plan, just go and turn Rosie into a monster like you to make yourself feel better?"

Putting on a mocking tone he started to impersonate Remus. "Sorry about that James and Lils, I know I promised to look after your daughter but since she's already a werewolf now, she'll need someone to look after her as she adjusts, and who knows maybe she'll like it better especially with me leading her pack, she'll only have to bend over a few times a month and-"

"Lacero, Lacero, Lacero," Remus screamed out the cutting curses that dug into Lestrange's flesh, nearly eviscerating him before Poppy cast spells to undo the most serious of the damage. "How dare you imply that I would do that to Rose?!"

It took Stephen a few seconds to collect his breath, but when he did he continued to grin at his captors. "Don't take it too personally fleabag, you're just another failure in Rose's life. Like Minerva over here," nodding to his head of house who was frowning at him.

"Professor McGonagall," she corrected.

"Oh please you've had enough transfigured suits of armor beating on me that we're long past using formalities Minnie," Lestrange cackled. "But I'm still not sure if you're the biggest failure in Rose's life. Not surprising that a woman with no children of her own wouldn't understand how to act motherly, probably explains why she never noticed the problems her students face."

Minerva bristled at the accusation that she failed any of her students, especially Rose.

"Come on, how many times does she have to come running to you with a problem only for you to dismiss it? You didn't listen when she told you about the Philosopher's Stone, sure she was wrong about who tried to steal it, but can you really blame her?"

The transfiguration professor did look a little ashamed that she had simply dismissed Rose's complaints out of hand like she had done. "How many times does she have to save the school before you stop looking at her like she's a particularly slow child?"

"I do not look at her-" Minerva tried to protest before being cut off.

"But no, you," Stephen nodded towards the Headmaster. "You are the biggest failure and truly the cause of all these problems."

Albus had been standing off to the side watching the proceedings with interest. Lestrange was stalling, but to what end he didn't know. "And just how have I been a failure in your eyes."

"Oh I dunno, we can start with your entire life. How does it feel Albus to know you personally shaped two dark lords that brought more death and destruction to the world than anyone in history and you managed that in less than what, fifty years?

Albus scowled, his history with Gellert Grindlewald was one he regretted for many years but just what did Lestrange know about Tom?

"I can't tell what's worse about this situation though, that you're perfectly fine with torture or that you can't muster up the courage to do it yourself?" Lestrange continued unabated. "Letting your servants do all the work for you, is that how you sleep at night knowing that it wasn't your wand that cast the spells?"

"I don't believe that you-" Albus tried to retort, getting angrier the longer Lestrange kept taunting.

"It's really not that difficult, you know that I'm a bad person, so are you just going to stand there until I say that I'm sorry," suddenly Stephen's breath hitched and he started to chuckle deeply. "Or are you simply so scared to actually get your hands dirty because deep down you know it was your killing curse that took Arianna's life?"

"Crucio," Albus shouted as he used the torture curse.

Lestrange's body locked up in intense pain because now the kid gloves had come off. Ten seconds of sustained agony before the spell ended. "Wow, didn't- think you had it… in you sir," Lestrange huffed. "But that's still won't be enough to get me to talk."

With shaking hands Albus reached up and pulled his glasses off his face, while everyone else remained silent. "It would seem I made a mistake. Treating every child like they are innocent and capable of change has only made this situation worse," Albus placed the frames back on and then sent a piercing hex into the muscles of Lestrange's arms and legs. "We're getting that information."

---

Closer to the time the task was ending, Viktor swam in and took away Hermione. Rose cut the ropes on Fleur's sister before also collecting Ron.

"I knew it," Ron said once they broke the surface of the water. Wrapping Rose in his arms. "I knew he was controlling you and all you needed was to see your true friends to break his curse."

"Get off me!" Rose shouted and shoved the redhead away as soon as they got back to the docks. "Where is he?" spinning around to see if Lestrange was waiting for her.

"Who?" Fleur questioned.

"Stephen, he wasn't here and he wasn't my hostage, something's wrong. Dobby," calling for the house elf.

"What can Dobby the House Elf do for the Great Witch Rose Potter?" Dobby bowed to the girl who freed him from his bad master.

"I need the Marauder's Map Dobby, it's in my trunk," wringing the lake water out of her hair.

Hermione came over to see what was going on with her friend when she saw the house elf hand over the map. "What's going on?"

"Lestrange wasn't here, he said he'd be here," Rose started while scouring over the map to find his dot. "There, he's… with the professors and Sirius?"

Shoving the map into Dobby's hand Rose ran up to the other champions. "Please, I need your help," she said with worry apparent in her tone.

The other three champions had no reason to dismiss this clear concern and followed Rose as she ran across the lawn up to the castle. A large procession of her friends joining her on the trip drew attention from everyone watching. Her wet feet slapping on the cold stone floor she came to a stop outside a door. Tugging on the handle, she found it to be locked. Raising her fist she pounded on the wood.

"Open this door!" she shouted. "What are you doing to him in there?"

Drawing her wand the blasting hex splashed against the wood. "No, dammit, I need more. Girls help me, bombarda."

Throwing their own spells into the mix the wood began to creak as the wards put up started to strain from defending. "We need a stronger spell than this."

"Da, I know of one," Viktor said and pulled back his sleeve. "Ogromen vzriv." The spell slowly pushed a small ball of light out of the wand. "We run now," Viktor said as he grabbed Hermione's hand and pulled her along behind him.

A second of widening eyes and suddenly everyone in the hall scrambled away. Diving around the corner they heard a massive explosion rock the hall. When they returned they found the door blown off its hinges.

"Stephen?!" Rose cried out as she ran into the room, only to get grabbed and pulled back by Remus. Now that her eyes adjusted to the light she could see what was going on inside the room.

"No, no no no, STEPHEN!" Rose screamed in horror at seeing his beaten and bloody body tied to a chair.

Coughing out a bit of blood onto his chest, Lestrange managed to lift his head. "Hey, Rosie," giving her a broken smile full of missing teeth. "How'd ya…" wheezing through the pain. "Do on your task?"

"Let me go, let me go right now Remus," Rose pulled against the werewolf's tight grip on her arms.

"Rose, it's for your own good," Sirius tried to explain. "He's an evil and dangerous wizard, the kid is a monster."

"The only monster I see here is all of you," Rose screamed. "You should never have gotten out of Azkaban Sirius if this is the kind of man you are. Stephen, Stephen, don't worry we'll get you out of here."

"He knows too much that he has not shared, I'm afraid we cannot allow…" Albus tried to reason before he had to throw up a shield to block the spell cast at him.

"Sir," Cedric gulped nervously while his wand arm shook. "You… you shouldn't be doing this." Despite his own belief that Stephen Lestrange was a bad person, an evil one in fact. That didn't excuse tying him up and torturing him in secret.

Now the professors were facing down a number of wands from their students, with Fleur and Viktor also drawing on them. With a heavy sigh Albus motioned for Remus to let go of Rose, who ran over and started to remove the bindings from Lestrange. "Ms. Potter, I can help," Poppy said quietly having been involved in the interrogation for the purposes of keeping Lestrange conscious and coherent throughout.

"No, you've done enough," Rose glared at the medi-witch before hefting Lestrange up and slinging his arm over her shoulder.

"Don't worry Stephen, we'll get you to St. Mungo's," she promised while slowly getting Lestrange to limp down the hall with her.

"Kre-Kreacher," Stephen whispered weakly.

"How does Kreacher help the young master?" Kreacher bowed, seemingly unphased by the state Lestrange was in.

"Take me to Aunt Andromeda, and my trunk," Lestrange coughed out some more blood on the floor. The house elf nodded and grabbed Stephen.

"I'm coming too," Rose stated because she wasn't going to let Stephen out of her sight, not when he was clearly in this much pain.

"Rose you should go celebrate," Stephen said.

"I can't do that knowing you could be dead." Rose countered.

"Fine," Stephen huffed. "Rose will be coming with us Kreacher."

---

With a snap of his gnarled fingers Kreacher brought the two children into the living room of the eldest of the Black sisters. "Who dares break into my home," Andromeda shouted as she stormed into the room.

"Please, please he needs help," Rose whimpered as she held Lestrange's weak hand in her own.

After hours of medical care, Andromeda finally relaxed into her lounge chair. "Madam Black, your tea," Kreacher offered, having been in and out a number of times to get potions and other things Andromeda needed to take care of her nephew.

"Thank you Kreacher," Andromeda sighed as she took her first sip to soothe her parched throat. Now she was just watching Rose Potter, of all witches, tenderly stroke her infamous nephew's hair while resting his head in her lap. "Ms. Potter, could you please tell me just how all of this happened? Why were you the one who brought my nephew to me, why was he like this and just why in Merlin's name did he have the Philosopher's stone?"

Rose just kept looking at Lestrange hoping that he would wake up and say something snarky to help assuage her concern. "I don't even know where to begin ma'am."

"Well he'll be like this for at least the rest of the night," Andromeda informed, because even with the best of her skills, the rare and obscure potions used, some of which Lestrange oddly kept in his school trunk, the recovery process would take some time. "So if you'd like you can start with how you met my nephew. He's not exactly known for running with a good crowd."

The redheaded witch cupped Lestrange's cheek before realizing that she should talk to an adult about this situation, and Andromeda Tonks was Stephen's aunt, she could be trusted right? After all when nearly dead that's who he wanted to be brought to for help, that had to mean something. "I only ever told some of my friends this but…"

Andromeda listened with rapt attention as Rose told her life story and how Lestrange fit into it. "I can see now why you two are together. I never knew my nephew was really like this." She had known of some of the problems her blood caused and it had always shamed her when she thought that if she had just gotten custody of Bella's son that things might have turned out better, but now she felt a bit of pride at the underhanded way Stephen had gone about protecting Rose and Hogwarts.

"I don't know if we can go back," Rose sniffled thinking about the castle and the people in it. "I don't know if I could stand to look at them after this."

"You don't have to," Andromeda offered the young witch.

"But I do, this stupid bloody tournament means I have to compete and supposedly Voldemort is doing something but Lestrange hasn't figured out what it is yet and he doesn't want to risk me and he keeps telling me that Hogwarts is safer for me than not, but look at him," Rose pointed down at Lestrange. "It wasn't safe for him, it never was."

"But he did all of that for you," Andromeda softly spoke. "He knew that Hogwarts would be the best place for you to make friends and have a good life so he put himself through all sorts of pain and derision just for your sake. Sweetie, that boy loves you so much if he's willing to go to such lengths for you. For now though, you can stay in Nymphadora's room. She won't mind."

---

Waking up in the morning Rose blinked slowly to come back to reality and then quickly threw off the blankets and rushed out of the bedroom to return to Stephen's side on the couch.

"He'll need a few more hours of rest I think before he's ready to wake up," a voice called out from the kitchen, startling Rose who hadn't even looked around the room. She saw a portly man sitting at the table with a mug in front of him.

"Ted Tonks," the man greeted. "And I'll be honest, I didn't expect to meet my nephew under these conditions. You should get some breakfast; you had a long day from what I read in the papers. Seems like some really big things are happening at Hogwarts."

Rose came over to the dining table and looked at the copy of the prophet that Mr. Tonks had set down for her to look at. "Albus Dumbledore tortures children?"

There weren't any of the photos that normally accompanied her scathing articles, but this one clearly was created by her somehow learning of what happened, meaning either someone who saw the room talked or that she was there without being noticed. She read through the paper and while Rita never outright said that Albus and the other adults had been torturing Stephen, it heavily alluded to some very questionable actions.

"I take it that the story isn't the normal made-up hogwash?" Ted asked, then took a sip from his mug.

"If you are referring to Rita Skeeter," a groaning voice came from the other side of the couch. "Then I think she has outlived her usefulness."

Slowly sitting up Stephen looked over the couch to the kitchen. "Oh hello Uncle Ted. How is life treating you?"

"You shouldn't be getting up," Rose chastised as she came over to stop her boyfriend from trying to leave the couch.

"I'm fine, just need some potions for the aches and I'll be able to move about," Lestrange waved off the help.

"And you know this because of the healer's license you have?" Andromeda tutted as she came down the steps after hearing all the commotion happening.

"All the experience from the cruciatus and other dark curses speaks for itself," Lestrange barked back at his aunt. "It's not my first time being hit by the spell and despite it being Dumbledore who cast it, he never really had the heart to put in the true hatred needed."

"That damn blood boiler Moody used, that really fucking hurt though," Lestrange hissed as he stretched his limbs earning some pops from the joints. "Gonna have to ask him where he learned that variant, it regulates the temperature better than mine."

"If you're done being melodramatic, we can all sit down for some breakfast," Andromeda rolled her eyes. Had she not gotten the truth from Rose, she would have far less patience for her nephew.

"Don't take away my sarcasm, it helps with the pain," Lestrange grumbled and took a seat at the table. "So I'll admit I don't really know you two all that well."

Andromeda sipped her morning cup of tea. "You never came by, or even sent a letter. And I had no means to track you once I became aware that Bella had a child."

"You never visited her or else she would have told you," Lestrange pointed a fork accusingly at his aunt. "As for me never coming by, once I was able to survive on my own, I spent much of my time trying to find Rose. She was more important, and after that I doubt I could have visited without attention being drawn to me."

"I'm still a little confused on how that came to be," Ted raised a finger. "See I'm aware my sister-in-law is in Azkaban, as are the Lestrange brothers. So who actually raised you?"

"Kreacher did," Lestrange answered while digging into his meal. "He raised me and trained me as Great-aunt Walburga saw fit."

Andromeda sputtered at hearing that. "Aunt Walburga?! Good lord how are you not entirely deranged?"

"Because I learned things, things that showed what she screamed were not right, that the world was wrong and I had to find out why. And it all seemed to be about her," Nodding his head towards Rose who looked more confused than anything.

"I had to know why he was so focused on her," Stephen hissed in frustration from the puzzle he could not solve even after all these years. "What was so important that she was the converging point of everything."

Stretching his neck Lestrange pushed away from the table. "We'll need to return to Hogwarts soon."

"What?!" Rose exclaimed. "You want to go back there?"

"We have to, otherwise they will come for you, currently they are shamed by their actions and are giving space while likely also covering their arses from being dragged out of the castle. But that will not last forever and the longer we wait the more likely they are to discover ways to track you or I," Lestrange grumbled while looking for his wand.

"You need time to rest," the red haired witch protested even as Lestrange called for Kreacher.

"I very much doubt that I will be attacked in Hogwarts, not after recent events, furthermore with how indignant you are about my health, I am unlikely to be without your presence," explaining why he didn't feel any concern about returning to the castle. "If not you, then you will likely sic Granger or one of your other friends on me."

"Stop telling me what I'm going to do," demanding that her friend cease this game of his.

Sighing, Stephen came over and gave Rose a soft kiss on the cheek. "I'm sorry, it's just after all these years, I know you and how you will behave. And I guess it's unfair for me to take advantage of that. But still, we do need to return."

"Do we really though? What about just whisking me away to a nice sunny beach?"

"Not until this tournament is over, there is a single task left, once it is done, then whatever scheme is in play will have passed and you will no longer be bound by the rules of the contract." Waving his wand over his clothes to get them the way he liked after being tortured and sleeping in them. "But if it will make you feel better, then I can take a few days off to be around you, maybe I'll make progress on not insulting your friends as much."

"Fine, but you are thanking them for coming to help you," poking Stephen in the chest with her finger.

"Why, they were helping you?" Stephen questioned why it became his responsibility to thank others.

"And I was helping you. No arguing mister, you can show a little humility for once."

Hanging his head with a smirk. "Yes dear."

Andromeda and Ted snickered in the background as Lestrange pulled Rose close to his body and stole a kiss before they were taken back to Hogwarts. "Oh that's why our nephew never came around, he's such a sweetheart."

---

Stepping back into the Great Hall ceased all conversations, Rose could see all eyes turn towards them, including those seated up at the head table. She felt disgusted that so many of those sitting up there were once people she respected greatly. At least they had the decency to look ashamed when she was meeting their gaze.

As the couple walked down the rows of students to sit with Rose's friends Sirius came hurrying over. "Rose I'm sorry, things got-" he tried to say before she slapped him across the face.

"How dare you apologize to me?" Rose hissed at the man who flinched back from the strike. "You took a child, my friend and tried to force information out of him. For what?"

"To protect you," Sirius tried to explain.

"From what? For your information, I have spent years dealing with whatever problems came in my life, without yours or any of their protection, but I had Stephen's," Rose snarled while grabbing Lestrange's hand.

"Protect you from him," Sirius shouted as he pointed to the dark wizard behind his goddaughter. "Please, Rose you have to listen to me, he's dangerous."

"I know he's dangerous, because he has to be," Rose screamed. "But never once did you think to come to talk to me first, you just assumed you knew best without knowing anything."

"Give me another chance, please your parents-" Sirius begged only to be cut off.

"Do not use my parents to excuse your bad behavior, if you want forgiveness then do what is right, asking without action is meaningless," Rose said firmly before strutting past her godfather.

Stephen just smiled at the man before patting him on the shoulder and stepping around him, but instead of taking a seat immediately, he continued up towards the head table where he threw up a privacy charm. "You have squandered your chance for information, you will not get another. Attempt what you have done again and I will take your lives without remorse."

Dropping the spell he stepped away from the table to allow those involved to simmer on what he had said. This new spot in the middle of Rose's group of friends allowed him the ease of thanking those who had joined her call to action without having to go very far.

"Just how are you okay so soon?" Katie questioned because in the shape she had seen Lestrange leaving the room she had expected a long stay wherever he went to get better.

"My Aunt Andy's, she's always been a good healer even if she never became licensed. Plus this and that odd potion, maybe just a bit of the Elixir of Life," Lestrange smirked as he pulled the philosopher's stone out of his pocket.

Hermione gasped. "I thought it was destroyed?"

"Nope, after that incident under the school, I swapped out the real thing with a replica that I cracked in half, managed to fool the great bearded one into believing it had served its purpose," Stephen chuckled. "Pretty useful to have on hand."

"I'll say," Angelina whistled. "So hey Lestrange, have I ever told you just how handsome you are?"

"Hmmm, nice try Johnson," Lestrange replied. "But I'm not going to give you a bunch of gold just because you tell me things I already know."

"See he's fine, if they couldn't even bruise his ego then the torture wasn't going to stick," Ginny taunted.

"Watch it She-Weasley, if you aren't careful I'll use this ill gotten good to buy up the entire supply of fizzing whizbees and you won't have your favorite snack for months," wiggling his eyebrows at the girl who looked scandalized by the threat.

"That's so petty," Alicia cackled while Ginny just complained about how not getting her treat would be cruel and unusual punishment. "Oh man, that's such a good threat."

"Speaking of threats, Granger I need to pick your head about something," Lestrange said as he reached over and plucked something out of her hair. "Struggle and I kill you," he seemingly said to his closed fist.

Standing up from the table he noticed that he was getting some looks. "Well come along if you want to see me work."

Having already eaten with the Tonks', Rose was eager to see just what had Lestrange's attention in his hand, so she followed him out with her friends following after.

---

"So this is your little lair," Katie whistled after being brought to the large room behind a pillar, hidden in a locked cupboard.

"Yup, it was discovered by a Gaunt a century ago, along with a few other places involving Salazar Slytherin, but those are a bit of a nuisance to get to, so this one isn't too bad," Lestrange explained as he put something down on a table before covering it with a beaker.

"There is no way out of here, if you try, I'll make sure your death is painful, I will lift the glass and you can transform yourself, maybe if you are convincing, you will be able to leave the castle alive," Lestrange threatened as he moved the glass off allowing everyone to see he had caught a beetle.

The bug shifted and grew before it revealed itself as Rita Skeeter, who instead of talking immediately drew her wand only to have thick rope pin her to the table, ever tightening to strangle the life out of her. "I warned you," Lestrange shrugged and turned away from the choking witch. But it was Rose who looked upset. "What? Whaaat?"

"Fine," whipping his wand around the rope around her throat was given some slack and Rita started hacking and gasping for air. "I'm still hurting her," he stated as he went over to a wall where he kept some metal spikes and hammers.

"Didn't we just learn that torture was bad?" Hermione shouted.

Lestrange looked over his shoulder at the bushy brunette. "What, no? The lesson was that ineffective torture is bad, those bumbling morons had me for an entire night and couldn't get anything useful out of me. Give me five minutes and she'll be begging for death, Hell I could get her to sell her own parents to me just for a few seconds of relief."

Rose walked over to where Rita would be able to see her. The tears streaking out of the bound witch's eyes as she tried to get words out. "If you don't want him to prove his claim, I'd seriously be trying to get on his good side right about now."

With the amount of slack in the rope Rita was able to turn her head just enough to see that Lestrange had set down the spikes and hammer and instead pulled out some medieval looking device that he was measuring against his fingers. "Yeah this will really hurt."

"I'll talk, I'll squeal, you want information, Lucius Malfoy is bribing the minister, Dolores Umbridge is embezzling funds. Amelia Bones is having an affair with a younger wizard," Rita blabbered before screaming as Lestrange started to walk back over. "Please, please, wait wait wait wait. Um, Albus Dumbledore was secretly in love with Gellert Grindlewald and the man is still alive in Nurmengard."

"Already knew all that, well not the bit about Madam Bones, that's quite juicy gossip," Stephen said as he attached the metal to a finger on Rita's right hand. "But not useful."

"I can be useful, please just give me a chance," Rita begged. "Rose please don't let him do this."

After a second Rose sighed. "She doesn't need to be tortured, all she's done is upset people with her articles."

"And," Lestrange paused in his motions which would have painfully torn the fingernail straight up off the bed.

"Let me handle this okay?" Rose shook her head. "Rita right now I'm the only thing keeping him from skinning you alive. So help me help you."

"What do you want? Name your price, I'll pay anything," Rita cried out.

"I don't want money, but I guess if you wrote some articles," Rose looked over her shoulder at the some of the people her articles had hurt.

"Sure, I'll write all the articles about how wonderful, beautiful and merciful you are, just don't let him," Rita started to say before Lestrange pulled the lever which ripped her fingernail out. She began to scream her head off which only echoed more in the large chamber.

"That's not what she's asking for," Lestrange sing-songed over the wailing.

"Lestrange?!" Rose shouted.

"Fine," Stephen pouted while drawing his wand and using a complex spell to fit the nail back in. "See no permanent damage."

The witch bound to the table just whimpered softly. "But he's right, I don't want fluff pieces, I just want the truth written okay. No more taking things out of context just to drum up readers, you'll get plenty of that with the truth anyway."

Through teary eyes, Rita nodded. "Only the truth, only the truth Ms. Potter, I swear, please just let me go."

By now the woman was openly sobbing from just the barest amount of torture. "You can let her go now."

"Fine," Stephen said before waving his wand to release the witch from her bindings. But before she could get away, he shot out his hand to grab her throat. "There is nowhere on this Earth that I cannot find you, Rita Witzkowski, remember this. I am the sword, she is the salvation."

Rita nodded frantically as she stared into Lestrange's cold, unfeeling eyes. "Good witch, you do good work, you don't have anything to worry about."

The moment his fingers were no longer on her, she sprinted out of the room towards the way she had come in. "And, that was less than five minutes. Fun times," Lestrange happily said as he vanished any traces of blood from the table.

"That was fucking terrifying," Angelina gulped as while she had seen Lestrange torment others before, the actual act of torture wasn't done in the public eye. That level of detachment from the pain he was causing scared her, as it did everyone else.

"What are you all worried about, you're Rose's friends, she'd be quite cross with me if I tortured any of you," Lestrange said curiously as he tossed away the torture device, before walking over to a cabinet and to the surprise of everyone, it held board games of all things. "Now who's up for boggle?"

---

A few days later, Rose was walking through the halls between classes when a very frazzled Rita Skeeter came up to her, "See I wrote the truth." All but shoving the article into the red headed witch's face. "Please, tell him that I did good."

Rose skimmed through the article which talked about the recent wizengamot session and how the bill proposed was a ploy by Nott to give him an edge against another family by making it harder for them to purchase doxy wings locally while still allowing him to source his own from outside of magical Britain. She had no idea that was even going on but clearly this would not have been put in the paper otherwise, so she gave credit that Rita was taking the threat against her seriously.

"Yeah, this looks great Rita," Rose agreed with how she was doing a good job so far. "I'll talk to Stephen."

"Thank you, oh blessed child, thank you," the frightened witch said before running out of the castle because she felt the longer she was at Hogwarts the more likely she would be to run into Lestrange and disappear.

---

For the most part in the weeks after the second task, Rose was just finally able to spend some time with her friends and Stephen without interruption. Or she would have if Ron hadn't kept trying to get between them. Anytime she was in some public place, Ron would find an excuse to be around them, he was clearly trying to keep them apart and only serving to get on her last nerve.

"Can you please stop following us?" Rose shouted at Ron who had been trailing her and Lestrange all over Hogsmeade.

"Why Rose, clearly you love me, it's why I was chosen as your most beloved for the lake challenge," Ron pleaded as he approached his friend. "Look into your heart, after everything we've been through, you have to see we were meant to be."

Lestrange just sighed and flicked his wand in Ron's direction and after a second Rose held back a snort.

"Sorry I wasn't paying attention, oh cousin Draco, what a pleasant surprise to see you without your bookends," Stephen greeted after turning around.

"I'm not Malfoy," Ron questioned being spoken to like he was related to Lestrange.

"Well you certainly look like him, one more second," flicking the wand a second time to alter Ron's voice. "Now you'll sound like him."

"What did you do," a more sniveling voice came out from Ron's lips who startled at the difference. "I'm telling a professor."

Watching the now blond run back up towards the castle, put a smile on Rose's face even if she had to bat Lestrange's arm. "You're going to get in trouble for that."

"Pfft, what no I'm not, it's an easy fix and depending on who does it, they'd find it funnier than cruel," Lestrange defended himself. "Now that we're alone, I wanted to show you this fun little alley."

Rose was led by the hand off the path the other students were walking to have some time to make out with her boyfriend since she was not getting much time to do so with the last task coming up.

---

Before the third and final task of the tournament, the champions were allowed to spend it with their family, being that Rose had none, it was Hermione, the Weasleys, Sirius and Remus waiting for her. She had asked Lestrange if he would be there, but he had to decline and said that with the final task being so soon, he would need more time to prepare.

"But I promise I will be there when you win this," Stephen said before slinking off.

That left her alone with just the other champions in the tent waiting for Dumbledore to come and explain the next task, the body of Ludo Bagman had never been found even with Minerva explaining to the headmaster that Lestrange admitted to killing him. Barty Crouch Senior was no longer associated with the tournament so it was left to Albus as a judge and host of the tournament to finish it off.

"Well Rose, despite the rocky start to this tournament it's been a hell of a ride," Cedric commented as the time to start the final task grew near. "Not a great one, mostly because your boyfriend is a terrifying and violent psychopath, but it's definitely a story I'll tell to my children with a lot of details left out."

"Thanks, and I'll try to keep my kids from bullying yours," Rose smirked.

"Already thinking about children with your man huh," Fleur teased the redhead, she was quite happy with how things had turned out, the tournament was far more entertaining with everything that happened in the school, the education she received in the school was far more active than at Beauxbatons, much less safe as well, but it was apparent to her why Hogwarts produced powerful witches and wizards, you'd have to be just to survive all seven years in this madhouse.

Announcing that Rose would be entering the maze second for her excellent performances in the previous tasks with Viktor Krum only being given a slight head start, Rose was actually confident in her ability to win this.

The first obstacle was when she turned a corner and saw Lestrange standing in the center. "Stephen?" Rose said curiously because it was confusing her why he would suddenly be here.

"Oh look it's the useless, weak, unloved orphan," Stephen nastily said to Rose as he turned towards her.

Rose drew her wand and cast the spell to repel a boggart. "You'll have to try something more frightening than the person I love turning his back on me," she said even as she felt her heart pounding in her chest. Thankfully the next obstacle was much simpler as it was just a hallway that messed with her senses.

Turning a corner she had to duck spellfire. "What the hell Cedric?!" Rose shouted as she raised a shield.

"Sorry Rosey," Cedric shrugged as he deflected the redhead's response. "We are meant to do battle in here."

Rose spat on the ground. "Well you could have bloody well gone for a fair fight instead of taking me out with a sneak attack."

Cedric whipped his wand around to send a barrage of knives at the young lady. "I thought you were Krum, figured I'd only beat him if I got the drop on him."

"Oh and you think you can take me in a real duel?" Rose scoffed indignantly.

"Yeah, after all I am ol-" Cedric said before he slumped down.

"He talk to much," Viktor said as he stepped out from behind Cedric. "Now Rose you can feel the sting of my spells."

"Not if Fleur has anything to say about that," Rose said with a smirk. "We lady's stick together."

Viktor whirled around expecting to see the veela behind him except she wasn't turning back he saw that Rose had used his distraction to run. "Clever," the Bulgarian chuckled as he hurried down the path further into the maze.

Rose slid under a blast ended skrewt to keep her pace, she knew of their weaknesses having grown them in Hagrid's lesson all year, hopefully the horrible creature's nigh invulnerable shell would prove a meaningful obstacle to Viktor's more forward-thinking approach to problems.

Now she just had to handle this sphinx. "A spider," Rose smiled because if there was one thing Stephen insisted that she practice at any given chance was problem solving, so the riddle was no problem for her. Turning the corner she could see the bejeweled trophy glowing on a pedestal, sprinting forward she could see Fleur had done the same thing. But while the veela was keeping her eye on the prize, Rose had learned those were the easiest people to trip up. Waving her wand to create an illusion, the veela recoiled from the overweight, pimply, foul-smelling man wearing a shirt far too small, an overcoat with a fedora. "Muh Lady," the mockery of human imagery tipped its hat at the beautiful lady.

It took Fleur a second to recover only to see Rose smiling while standing next to the cup. "That was a dirty trick, showing me such a horrible sight," Fleur huffed while straightening out her robes. "No males would ever look like such slobbish beasts."

"You never know, if my cousin was still alive, maybe," Rose shrugged before taking hold of the cup and feeling like a hook had latched onto her before pulling.

---

She roughly hit the ground in a dark field with a groan. "Ugh, stupid portkey," she grumbled as she picked herself up to assess her surroundings. "What is this?"

Rose found herself among tombstones in a cemetery of all place. "Why bring me here?" she questioned as she moved around the various statues until she found a cauldron in front of one. Rubbed her hand over the stone to remove the dust and her eyes widened at the name carved into it.

Tom Riddle

She turned on her heels to get back to the portkey when a tall figure in a black robe and silver mask got in her way, more of these people started to come out of the shadows. "Stun her, but do not kill her," a man ordered.

"Malfoy?" Rose questioned before she was under the fire of a number of red spells. She couldn't block or deflect them all and was quickly dispatched and she lost consciousness.

She had lost all sense of time so Rose was unaware of how long she had been out, but it had been enough for her to be restrained against the statue of the angel of death. Through bleary eyes she watched as a Death Eater dunked some malformed human thing into the bubbling cauldron. It was some sort of hellish ritual, bones and flesh were sacrificed into the mixture until another Death Eater walked up and slit her wrist to draw some blood.

Rose winced from the pain but watched enraptured as her blood was put into the cauldron. Sudden, bone chilling quiet came shortly after, as if no one could breathe before the cauldron split down the middle.

Standing there bare as if birthed from a cocoon was Voldemort, his pale slick skin and harsh red eyes full of rage stared into her own. Even without a wand he was able to cloak himself in robes made of the very shadows themselves. He swirled his neck around as if relieving an ache that had been festering for years. "My wand," he finally said while holding out his hand.

"I took," Malfoy said as he came over to grovel. "Not an inconsiderate effort to retrieve that from the ministry after Pettigrew's failure."

Voldemort just held the wood in his hands reverently as if finally being reunited with a long-lost friend. He exhaled heavily before turning to face the crowd that watched him tentatively. "My… friends," the way he said the word sounded more like how a predator would announce itself to its next meal. "After so many years, to see you all before me."

Then he snarled and ripped the masks off each and every one of them to expose their faces, in doing so it must have caused some pain as they all recoiled. "Why did it take so long to do, I must ask?"

"Sire we…" Lucius pleaded before he was silenced with a simple motion of the Dark Lord's hand.

"It matters not," Voldemort said, cutting off his underling. "We have a special guest, Rose Potter. After all these years, I can look upon you in the flesh."

He slunk over to her and she grimaced at his gnarled teeth before she hissed in pain when he placed a finger on her forehead. "And now I can do so much more than look," he moved his hand to cause the statue to release her.

With a thud she fell onto the wet graveyard grounds, surrounded by people who would happily see her dead. "I shall savor your screams," raising his wand. "Cru-"

The Dark Lord cut off his spell to block an incoming curse. "Who dares?!" he hissed in fury looking into the shadows.

"Now now Voldy, there's really no need for that, you got what you wanted," Stephen said as he walked into the clearing. Crabbe Sr. attempted to get in Lestrange's way but a white light burst through his torso bisecting him completely. "Rose has come to you, you have a body, why do you continue to press your luck?"

"Ah yes," Voldemort grinned at the child. "My dear Bellatrix' wayward progeny, how I longed to have a chance to converse with you."

Stephen hissed and flung a killing curse at the Dark Lord, who pulled Goyle into the path to take the curse for him. "You dare not speak of my mother you filthy man, I cannot believe she worshiped the ground you walk upon. But I agree," Lestrange said while he took a deep breath.

"We do have much to discuss, father," Lestrange's wand hand twitched in anticipation. This revelation was enough to cause even Voldemort some pause. He looked at the boy facing him down curiously. "And we simply can't do that with a witness around."

Turning to Rose who was looking at him in hurt, he rolled his neck. "Now run along Potter, the portkey will return you to Hogwarts."

"But you have-," Rose started to protest before grass around the area ignited.

"You have been given a respite, it is in your best interest to take it, otherwise you will die here, I'm sure your parents wouldn't wish for you to throw your life away for some foolish notion that I was doing anything more than using you to return my father to his rightful place," Lestrange glared down.

Rose slowly stood up from the ground. "I suggest you take it girl," Voldemort warned. "I'm far more interested in how this child of mine came to be than you right now, but that may change. So go and warn Dumbledore that I have returned."

Seeing that neither the Dark Lord or Lestrange wanted her here now and the other death eaters were too scared to do anything, Rose, with tear stained cheeks, ran out of the graveyard to find the cup.

---

Plummeting down onto the field, she let out a painful sob before getting up and running. All fanfare of awarding the victor had come to an end when the one that should be getting praise was running away.

Hermione found her up in the owlry using the marauder's map. "Rose?" she quietly called out to her best friend. She had strongly urged the professors and everyone else that she should go to see Rose alone, so they had waited outside for a result. Entering she could see her redheaded friend sitting on the dirty floor caressing Hedwig who nuzzled against her cheek.

"What happened?" Hermione asked as she sat next to the distraught young lady.

"He's back," Rose sniffled. "This whole tournament was to give You-Know-Who a body again. And, I feel so stupid, all these years and he was playing me."

"Who? Who played you?" Hermione inquired.

"Lestrange, he…" Rose stopped before revealing to Hermione that Lestrange's father had not been either Rabastan or Radolphus but instead the Dark Lord himself, for some reason she felt that she shouldn't tell people this, as if it would be a betrayal to the person who had betrayed her. "He was in on it."

Hermione gasped before launching herself into a tight, comforting hug for Rose who must be feeling like her heart was shattered into a million pieces right now. "It's going to be okay."

"No, it won't, I'm hurting Hermione, I didn't… this hurts so much."

"I know, I know it does, I can't believe after everything he's done for you that this was a ploy to bring back Vol- You-Know-Who," Hermione consoled.

"Well it was, and I'm such a fucking idiot for falling for it," Rose screamed angrily. "He spent his entire life fooling and tricking every one that I should have realized I was his first con."

She just didn't know how to help her friend through this pain, slowly she got up and went outside to tell the others what Rose had disclosed.

They were horrified about the implications of the Dark Lord's return, but it was worse because it had come on the coattails of a young girl's pain and sorrow.