Bad Romance

Chapter 9

Chapter 9: Keep your Friends Close and Your Enemies Closer

"We knew about the Horcruxes... No," Bellatrix corrected herself, still struggling to process the information that had always been waiting, locked away within her mind. "We knew about the one Horcrux... The one that ruined Kreacher and Regulus and nearly cost Kreacher his life. Regulus eventually went to his father about it, and that's how we found out."

Bellatrix felt her breath coming faster as she spoke. She kept her gaze on her husband, struggling to hold onto the here and now as her memories and emotions wandered to a far more unpleasant period in their lives.

Drawing in a deep breath, she forced herself to go on. "Uncle Orion thought we should know who we were serving, because it turned out none of us truly did. He came with Regulus and Kreacher, and they told us all of it. Of the Dark Lord's mission for Kreacher, how he was left to die, and finally about the Horcrux. Regulus would've been frightened enough of the Dark Lord to continue serving him in spite of his Horcrux, because we all knew there was no going back once one took the Dark Mark. The fact that he would've killed Kreacher while knowing how much he meant to Regulus, though...it sent him over the edge a little."

"You lot actually cared about that?" The dry question came from Zabini. He stood leaning against the door, expression cool and removed as always.

Bellatrix frowned. "We all liked Kreacher. He was always better... Somehow more than many others of his kind, a cut above the rest, as it were. So no, of course, we didn't think he deserved to die like that when he'd committed no wrong. More than that, though, the way he treated Kreacher showed clearly how little the Dark Lord truly valued any of us. Kreacher was just as loyal as the rest of our family, but even if he had no regard for elves, the Dark Lord did have a seeming regard for Regulus... and Regulus doted on that elf. So as a leader, why would you kill someone a devoted follower of yours doted upon if said follower had done nothing to displease you?"

She shook her head, still baffled by that concept even now. The Dark Lord had demanded loyalty but had given absolutely none in return. "Regulus was justifiably upset and went digging around. As you know, he discovered the Dark Lord had made a Horcrux. That, plus the fact that he wanted something kept from his followers enough to kill Kreacher, got Regulus curious in the worst way. Then there was the Dark Lord's open disregard for his followers which he'd shown with his willingness to toss Kreacher aside like garbage rather than even bothering to alter the elf's memories. This had opened Regulus's eyes. As Uncle hoped, it opened ours as well. We understood that we had no idea who we were dealing with or what his true limits were, if he had any. Uncle feared his plans would get us all killed in the end."

Bellatrix paused to drain her glass before leaning over Rod to place it on the small, ornately carved table beside the sofa. This was more than difficult to think about, but speaking of it somehow helped. It was freeing, therapeutic for others to finally know even if experiencing the horror of it threatened to shatter her a little. Rod kept a grip on her hand as she spoke, and that was enough to anchor her so that she could finish.

"Uncle came to us because we were family and Voldemort's most loyal. He knew he could trust us and because he believed the Dark Lord did as well, he thought that together we could easily corner and trap him. Uncle Orion wanted the six of us to strike out at him and take him down before things grew worse. You know, looking back it's ironic and even quite funny!" She gave a mad cackle. "No one would ever guess in a million years that we were the first to try to take him down, but we were! Everyone wants us locked away for what we did, but we were the first damn heroes. But guess what?"

She glanced regretfully at her empty glass. Though she longed for a refill, she knew it probably wasn't a good idea. This was bad enough as it was, and if she lost control right now, destructive shit would probably happen to their manor or perhaps half of the wizards in London or Hogsmeade just for fun...