Variations

Chapter 7: The Story of the Devoted Follower

"Good afternoon, Severus, may I come in?"

The man gave no sign that he was happy or worried or surprised to see her; he simply stood aside and watched as Bellatrix Lestrange slipped through the door and into his dingy sitting room.

"Would you like anything to drink?" Severus offered as he pulled the door shut behind her.

"No, thank you," Bellatrix replied, settling herself on a moth eaten chair. Life on the run had not been kind to the former potions master, but this was perhaps his meanest situation yet. "I don't intend to stay long."

"As you wish," Severus replied impassively, seating himself as well. "To what do I owe the pleasure?"

"I was simply hoping to check up on my nephew."

There is was, subtle but clear, a crack in the mask he'd been wearing since their encounter began.

"I'm afraid Draco isn't here."

"I see," Bellatrix sighed, forcing herself to look disappointed, but she'd already supposed as much. "That is unfortunate. Sissy's been very concerned about him, but couldn't come herself without risking discovery, so she asked me to visit in her stead."

"I understand," Severus said without a hint of emotion. "But I can assure you that Draco is in very excellent care."

"Andromeda's, perhaps?"

Severus flinched visibly, his emotionless facade momentarily forgotten, and a look of concern passed his normally unreadable features, confirming that Bellatrix had been correct in her guess. In fact, she'd suspected that her blood traitor sister had been harboring her nephew all along. She would have inquired at Andromeda's first if Draco was truly the person she wanted to see.

"I must admit I was surprised to see you," Severus said.

"Oh?" Bellatrix replied. Let him think that she'd missed his slip. Let him think that he was still safe.

"Yes," Snape continued, his mask no longer as firm as when she'd first arrived. "I haven't heard from any fellow Death Eaters in weeks. In fact, many said that you'd all gone to Albania to regroup."

"Is that so?" Bellatrix replied, feigning confusion.

"Yes," Snape said, but it was clear that he was beginning to catch on. That was unfortunately, really. Bellatrix had been hoping to keep stringing him along for awhile yet.

"That's strange," Bellatrix said, watching carefully to gauge his reaction. "I can't imagine why everyone would lie about something like that to a loyal Death Eater like you."

Severus tensed. Bellatrix smiled.

"Unless...oh, Severus," Bellatrix continued patronizingly, but it was obvious that he knew this was exactly the topic she'd been intending to discuss when she arrived. "How could you?"

"Bella, you know I-"

"How could you ever think you could fool the Dark Lord," she snapped, her patience evaporating when her pet name passed his traitor's lips. "You nearly convinced me the night you made the unbreakable vow with my sister, but not him, never him."

"Where are the Death Eaters, if they're not in Albania?" Snape asked.

"Yes, that would interest you," Bellatrix laughed. "They are currently gathering to learn the Dark Lord's plan. I must be leaving soon myself. You see, in less than an hour we are going to attack Hogwarts."

Snape stiffened, then said, "More lies, Hogwarts is too well protected."

"It used to be, but now that old fool Dumbledore is gone..." Snape wasn't quick enough to check his angry look and Bellatrix laughed again before continuing. "The wards as they stood were barely sufficient to repel us, and today they are even weaker."

Snape surged to his feet, but Bellatrix was faster and placed herself between him and the door. There was no other exit; she'd made sure of that when she arranged for Severus to hide in this shack.

"Why did you tell me all that?" Snape asked warily.

"Because," Bellatrix shrugged, and then in two quick flicks of her wand she disarmed and petrified him. Shoving a foot under his arm and kicking his stiff form onto his back, she continued, "I intended to ensure that you could never leave this place. Crucio."

Severus clenched his eyes shut and struggled for breath, but the effect was altogether unsatisfying. Bellatrix truly preferred to watch her victims squirm, hear them scream, but it was a small loss: she'd have plenty of people to torture soon enough.

Bellatrix pocketed both wands and turned to the door.

"No need to get up, I'll see myself out. Good night, Severus."

***************

There were so many, the greatest gathering of Death Eaters ever assembled. Nearly a hundred stood there, filling the air with their cheers whenever the Dark Lord paused for breath. Most of them had joined recently, since the start of the new war. They'd probably never even seen the Dark Lord before, and now they counted themselves privileged to be asked into his presence. They were deluded. The Dark Lord didn't trust them any more than he trusted the traitors of the first war, who chose to lie rather than go to Azkaban. There was only a select few who still retained the Dark Lord's absolute trust. Rodolphus and Rabastan were among them, but she, Bellatrix, was favored more than all the rest. That was why the Dark Lord had asked her to settle the problem of Severus Snape and to remain behind when he finished speaking to explain his cunningly constructed plan to the lowlifes before them. She took great pleasure in doing so, dividing them up into groups and declaring where and how they would attack, telling them that Potter was to be brought before the Dark Lord unharmed, and squashing any speculation about why the Dark Lord has such an interest in the boy. By far her favorite part was when she got to tell a hand picked group of Death Eaters that they would be escorting a Chimera through the Forbidden Forest and to the grounds of Hogwarts. She always enjoyed watching fear in the faces of her victims, and that time she hadn't even needed to raise a wand.

An hour later Bellatrix had slipped into Hogwarts through a passage from Honeydukes in Hogsmeade that Pettigrew had recommended. She was accompanied by a small group of Death Eaters, but she soon parted company with them and struck out on her own. Bellatrix's warning about Potter at the gathering had only been a courtesy. She intended to find the brat herself and present him to the Dark Lord, thus proving herself to be the greatest Death Eater.

She knew the spell was coming a moment before it reached her. The caster was cocky, celebrating his triumph too soon, and it gave him away. Bellatrix deflected the spell easily and felt the happiness that was emanating from behind an almost closed door a few steps behind her collapse into dread. This would be an easy kill, and a fun one, and the anticipation was enough to drive even the prospect of capturing Harry Potter from her mind.

Bellatrix turned back to the door, wand raised. Whoever had tried to attack her was still there, frantically attempting to find another place he could surprise her from, his thoughts repeatedly drifting back to...his wife. Sometimes, the benefits of knowing Legilimency surprised even her, facing this one would be more fun than she ever could have hoped.

"I know you're in here," Bellatrix cooed, pushing the door open and slipping inside. "You thought you could sneak up on me, and I can't have anyone running off with that idea."

But there was no response, not even in her opponent's thoughts. He seemed to have mastered himself at last, and Bellatrix simply couldn't allow that.

"How's your wife? Well, I suppose? Though I wouldn't expect her to stay that way. Hogwarts isn't the only place of interest to my Master."

There it was, a sudden thrill of fear: cold, overwhelming, and betraying. Her would-be assailant was cowering behind the Professor's desk.

Bellatrix waved her wand and the desk crumpled into sawdust, but at the same moment her opponent stood, his own wand raised. Three scars, wide and deep, disfigured his face. His bright red hair was tied into a ridiculous ponytail and a large fang hung from one ear. He was a Weasley, she might have known.

However, the next thing to happen caught Bellatrix off guard, though not Weasley, and made Bellatrix wonder if she might have underestimated him after all.

A spell hit her foot, hot and sharp and almost entirely distracting, but it wasn't Weasley who cast it, it was a wizard who Bellatrix had somehow missed before. He was standing in the doorway, and between him and Weasley, Bellatrix was now surrounded. The meddling blighters must have planned this all along. Bellatrix had encountered the wizard before, but never troubled to learn his name, Dodge, she thought it was, or Doge.

Bellatrix was now in a most unfavorable position indeed. No matter which enemy she chose to face, she would be turning her back on the other one. If she allowed the situation to continue there was no doubt that she would come off worse in this encounter, so it was fortunate that she had the solution.

Never taking her eyes off Doge, she pointed her wand at Weasley and performed a spell that would cause the first thing it contacted to explode.

Weasley dodged it and Bellatrix cast the same spell again, this time aiming for a place a short distance to his side, forcing him to leap away again, closer to Doge. His control was slipping again, even though she wasn't looking at him, Bellatrix could tell that Weasley knew what she was doing, but he could see no way to stop it. The other wizard was no help to him either. He tried to cast a few spells, but Bellatrix was able to disperse them easily. Thirty seconds later the classroom was in shambles, but Weasley and Doge were standing next to each other and Bellatrix's position was much improved. Now they could have a proper duel.

"Crucio!" Bellatrix cried gleefully, and Doge crumpled to the ground, screaming in pain.

It seemed like a fitting retaliation for the pain Doge had caused to Bellatrix's foot, but Bellatrix had been too enthusiastic and misjudged her timing. Weasley was a bit singed but still quite able to prevent his cohort from being tortured.

Weasley attempted to disarm her, forcing a choice between continuing to torture Doge and losing her wand. It was no choice really, if she lost her wand the spell would end anyway. Bellatrix blocked Weasley's spell and sent another one back in return. They dueled, more or less undistracted by the other wizard, who was still struggling to his feet. He'd likely never been the recipient of the Cruciatus Curse before: of all the reactions Bellatrix had witnessed, his was among the most pathetic.

However, this encounter was growing old, finding Potter was beginning to regain its appeal, and Weasley was proving himself to be more than a mere nuisance.

It seemed somehow unsporting to call such an abrupt end to their duel. As opponents went, this Weasley had to be admired: his offensive skills were lackluster, but he seemed to know the counter curse to every Dark spell she knew at him. Still, she had more important things to do.

"Avada Kedavra!"

Weasley stepping aside, dodging the spell, Doge did not. Bellatrix had just enough time to curse her luck before something odd happened. It was as though a thick fog had settled in her brain and everything she thought about turned up in the wrong spot. No matter which direction she thought Weasley was about to dodge or what defense she thought he was about to use, he always went the other way. Not a single one of her spells struck home. What's more, she seemed to have grown somehow sluggish and uncoordinated herself and was suddenly falling prey to almost all of Weasley's spells.

Eventually, her dulled mind determined a solution. She used the same exploding spells she'd employed to force Weasley across the room, only this time with no consideration for where they fell or how many she cast. Before long, Weasley had no choice but to flee.

When she was satisfied that Weasley was gone, Bellatrix made to leave as well, only to discover a setback her fogged mind had failed to anticipate: the damage from her explosions had blocked her way to the door. With an audible growl, Bellatrix turned to the unblocked wall, blasted her way though to the classroom next door, and left by that route, misjudging the width of the doorframe and hitting her shoulder as she went.

Bellatrix was so distracted by the fog in her mind and her mobile attempts to reverse the jinxes Weasley had hit her with, she was half way down the nearest staircase before she realized that she'd been intending to search upstairs for Potter. The next person she met was going to dearly regret that there was no reversal for the Confundus Charm.

As it transpired, that next person was another Death Eater, a woman, but someone Bellatrix didn't recognize. Still, as they passed in the hallway, she sensed something familiar about her.

"I don't believe we've had the pleasure," Bellatrix said, coming to a halt in contemplation. Behind her, she heard the woman spin around to look at her.

"Sorry?" she asked.

"We've never been introduced," Bellatrix clarified, back still turned, trying to determine where she'd met this woman.

"You're Mrs. Lestrange, aren't you? Your reputation precedes you."

There it was, a touch of hesitation just before she said Bellatrix's name. This other woman obviously knew her, but hadn't been sure what to call her. Bellatrix must know her as well, and there was only one person she knew who could disguise herself so expertly. Bellatrix had known her as an Auror, but she was wearing the robes of a Death Eater now, she must have changed sides. The Dark Lord must be pleased to have a Metamorphmagus in his service.

"What I meant was, I haven't met you," Bellatrix said, turning to face her niece.

"Calyn Moriarty," Nymphadora replied swiftly. She must have rehearsed that.

"Moriarty," Bellatrix said, "that's an unusual name. Not, unless I am very much mistaken, one of the pure-blood houses."

"My father was Muggle-born."

Bellatrix had to mask a smirk. That, at least had been the truth.

"I see. And your mother's maiden name?"

"Er," Nymphadora stuttered, stuck, but Bellatrix had already seen another weakness in her story and exploited it, perhaps a bit too quickly.

"The name sounds familiar."

"I think my father once mentioned that his Uncle tried to run for Prime Minister. You might have seen it in the papers."

Nymphadora was grasping now, and they both knew it.

"No, that can't be it, because I seem to remember my sister telling me about a character by the name of Moriarty, in a book she read with her Muggle-born boyfriend."

"Oh?" Nymphadora replied, practically oozing fear now.

"Quite a coincidence, I'll agree," Bellatrix said airily, enjoying the conversation. "Interestingly, again according to my sister, this Moriarty was supposed to be something of a criminal mastermind. That same sister now has a daughter, who happens to be a Metamorphmagus, but you'd know all about that, wouldn't you, Nymphadora?"

Bellatrix smiled and put a hand on Nymphadora's shoulder.

"I knew you'd come around eventually. I can understand you wanting to keep it secret from Andromeda and those Aurors you've taken up with, but you could have told me.

Nymphadora stared, her mouth dropping open slightly. She must have thought that no one would have been able to recognize her through her disguise, but she should have known that she wouldn't be able to fool her own Aunt. Furthermore, she should have known that having an Aunt in Bellatrix Lestrange would have helped her immensely as a Death Eater; she could have avoided all the unpleasant tasks new Death Eaters were forced to perform; she could have even met the Dark Lord himself, by now.

"I know," Nymphadora said. "I should have told you, but I was so worried that my joining the Death Eaters would get back to someone that I decided not to tell anyone who I really was."

"You'll find that we do not take well to secrets," Bellatrix said, her pride slipping into concern. "As soon as this battle is over you should go to the Dark Lord and give him your true identity. It will be much worse for you if he discovers it on his own."

"I understand," Nymphadora said. "I should go, I was on my way to-"

"Of course," Bellatrix interrupted. "I have important business myself."

Nymphadora turned away, but Bellatrix grabbed her arm and pulled her into a hug. The last time she'd met her niece they were on opposite sides of the battle in the Department of Mysteries. They'd tried to do horrible things to each other and meant to do worse, but now they were on the same side. It was like having her niece back again, and, by proxy, her sister. After a long moment, they released each other and turned away, back to their war.

After another hour of wandering Hogwarts, neatly incapacitating any opposition she came across but with no sign of Potter, Bellatrix was beginning to get frustrated, and, truth be told, a bit sloppy. Thus, she was almost surprised when Neville Longbottom burst out from behind a tapestry and pointed his wand at her.

"Ah! Ickle Longbottom," Bellatrix cooed. "I wondered if I'd be seeing you here."

"Neville! Are you sure you want to do this?"

Bellatrix turned to the source of the second voice and found Harry Potter ducking out from behind the tapestry as well. She blinked, her usual smile nearly faltering in her surprise. Through all her searching, she had never anticipated that Potter might present himself to her so easily.

"Do you?" Neville replied, half turning to Harry but never letting her out of his sight. This one thought he knew how to deal with Death Eaters, he might even try to duel her. Yes, the look in his eye as he turned back to her confirmed it and Bellatrix's smile returned. She could not deny that she had much desired the opportunity to face this child once again. Harry Potter thought himself noble; he wouldn't leave until this was finished.

"Even little Harry Potter is afraid to face me," Bellatrix said gloatingly, "but you think you can do it alone? This should be entertaining."

Longbottom raised his wand and gave it a flick, but the spell went wide and missed entirely. Bellatrix stepped aside and looked behind her to see where the spell went and was surprised to see that a suit of armor there had sprung to life, but only long enough to raise its sword threateningly before freezing in place.

"Ooh, a distraction," Bellatrix said, turning back to Neville. "I'll be sure to watch out for that." And without another word on the subject she raised her wand and cast sectumsempra.

Longbottom fell backwards even before the spell met him, but he managed to cast a shield charm in time. The rest of his little friends, all but one of those she'd met in the Department of Mysteries, rushed forward to help, but he waved them off, foolish Gryffindor.

"Eager for more?" Bellatrix laughed, seeing his determined face. "I'll see what I can do, then."

She sent another curse his direction, but Longbottom jumped out of the way this time and fired one back. Bellatrix easily deflected it and returned another, beginning to enjoy this battle, a bit of sport that she was sure to win, a warm up before she took on Potter and his friends.

Then, unexpectedly, Bellatrix found herself forced backwards off her feet. Longbottom had finally landed a spell. But she didn't fall to the ground, she fell into the suit of armor Longbottom had tried to transfigure earlier, and the raised sword impaled her through the stomach. Bellatrix glanced down to study the wound, then threw her head back and laughed, choking slightly on the blood.

She knew already that this wound would be her undoing, maybe not if she were anywhere else, but there were no healers here, not for her. Still, there was a certain beauty to the fact that the last thing she'd ever do would be to torture Longbottom the same way she had his parents.

"Cruc-!"

But he didn't let her finish. She hadn't gotten the spell out before Longbottom yelled, "Stupefy!" and all went black.