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chapter seven,
christmas break
Beatrice Salvatore sat alone on the train back to London the next day — ever since the previous day's attack (she no longer felt the word "prank" was sufficient) on Ted Tonks, she had taken to avoiding her fellow students at all costs. While nobody technically knew that she had played a part in it, the suspicious looks from her dorm-mates only increased, and Lucius kept on sending her concerned looks. Just thinking about what they had done to Tonks made Beatrice feel sick. Even though Professor Dumbledore had since confirmed that Tonks was making a speedy recovery in the hospital wing, Beatrice was still being eaten alive by guilt.
And so she simply sat alone in her compartment, immersing herself in Emerald Rings, a classic wizarding love story from the twenties. Just as Aleksander landed the dragon, engagement ring still concealed in his pocket! Beatrice's reading was interrupted by Lucius, who seemed to have finished his prefect duties early. Beatrice did not stop reading immediately, only placing the raggedy old book down when Lucius sighed loudly and sunk into the seat next to her.
"Beatrice, can you please just talk to me?"
"I do not know what you want to talk to me about," she said with an impressive amount of aristocratic contempt for an eleven year old.
"We need to talk about what happened yesterday, Bea. With Bellatrix."
Beatrice shuddered at her cousin's use of the nicknames Bellatrix had taken to calling her. "Do not call me that."
Lucius gave her a look. "If you wish to avoid everything that reminds you of her, then you will be cutting yourself off from a rather large part of the world. I gave you that nickname, not her, and so I shall continue to use it." Beatrice just shrugged noncommittally, and Lucius continued. "Now... am I right in thinking that you played a role in yesterday's incident?" Beatrice nodded hesitantly, "And Bellatrix did not tell you the full extent what was to happen, did she?" Beatrice nodded again, and Lucius let out a weary sigh. She waited a moment for the long "I told you so" speech that was sure to come, but was surprised when Lucius instead said: "I am sorry Beatrice... Oh do not look at me with such shock, I recognize my own fault in this. I should have made more of an effort to warn you of Bellatrix's schemes... she has recently become very passionate about our beliefs, and tends to take things too far, as you saw yesterday." Beatrice did not miss her cousin's use of the word "our", but Lucius continued obliviously, raking a hand through his long hair. "Would you like to talk about what happened?"
