𝐓𝐎𝐔𝐉𝐎𝐔𝐑𝐒 𝐏𝐔𝐑 -- 𝐭𝐡𝐞 𝐛𝐥𝐚𝐜𝐤 𝐬𝐢𝐬𝐭𝐞𝐫𝐬

0.1 ‣ bellatrix black

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CYGNUS BLACK thrust his daughter Bellatrix through the doorway, his grip on her hair not budging as she whimpered in pain. "You're weak," He hissed through gritted teeth as Narcissa and Andromeda glanced up at the scene. "You don't heed the rules? You get punished," their father snarled, pulling his wand out and placing the tip against Bellatrix's temple.

"Father, please--" Andromeda cut in, trying to interceed on her older sister's behalf, but stopped short at Cygnus's glare.

"You're seventeen, Bellatrix. You should know by now to listen to your elders. We are of the oldest and most noble house of Black, and it's time you enter into a marriage contract. And I won't accept any more of your complaints." Their father growled firmly, relinquishing his grip on his daughter's hair. Bellatrix looked at her feet and nodded, trying not to let him see her shaking hands. Cygnus glared down his nose at her, before shaking his head and leaving the room.

The moment his footsteps had receeded down the hall, Bellatrix collapsed on her bed, raising a hand to the place where he'd gripped her hair. "Merlin fucking damn it," She muttered, wiping away a tear with her free hand. Narcissa crossed the room and settled next to her sister.

"What, uh... What was it about this time, Bella?"

Bellatrix scoffed quietly, running a hand through her hair. "They want to get me married off. I tried to argue, but you both saw how that ended up." She sighed, absentmindedly rubbing her temple where Cygnus's wand had dug in. "He threatened to erase my memories again. Like he always does when I don't agree, he molds my mind to his will."

Andromeda shook her head sympathetically, closing the History of Magic textbook she'd been taking notes from. "Who are they pushing on you? They've been trying to force me together with Evan Rosier. He's absolutely horrid, but what can I do?" The brunette shuddered. 

"Lestrange. Admittedly not the worst option, but still... I want to choose. I just wish I had a choice," Bella groaned, rubbing her eyes. Narcissa opened her mouth to chime in, but was cut off with an incredulous scoff from Andromeda.

"It's not like you have anything to contribute, Cissy. Everyone knows you're going to end up with Malfoy. Or should I say, Lucius," Andromeda corrected herself, saying his name in a mockingly lovesick tone. Narcissa scowled at her sister in an attempt to cover up the blush spreading across her face.

Bella straightened her shoulders, erasing the growing smile from her face. "Father was right. I need to marry, and preserve the purity of our line," She said firmly, not a flicker of doubt in her eyes. "We're from a family in the sacred twenty-eight. It's our responsibility to maintain our pure-blood status, and the only way to do that is to follow the old rules." The black-haired girl continued as Narcissa nodded in agreement.

"Toujours pur," The blonde added confidently, taking Bellatrix's hand.

"Toujours pur." Andromeda and Bella repeated in unison.

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Bellatrix shaded her eyes against the glaringly bright sun as she glanced out the window. It was the first day of the last weekend of summer. In three days she'd be back at Hogwarts for her final year, and after that she'd be married off and expected to fulfill her duties as a pure-blooded wife.

Bella wrinkled her nose as several muggles passed by the Black family mansion. "Filthy muggles," She muttered, shaking her head in distaste. They were lesser, not worthy to be in the presence of someone as pure as herself. "Narcissa, Andromeda, get up," The seveteen-year-old instructed, brushing a lock of curly hair out of her face as she examined her reflection in the glass.

Andromeda stretched her arms as she sat up, blinking rapidly at the sudden burst of light from the window. "Kreacher, my slippers please," The brunette murmured, snapping her fingers for the house-elf, who promptly popped into the room. "Thank you, Kreacher. You can go." Bella's sister said gently as he handed her slippers to her.

"Bella, why do we have to get up now? It's so early!" Narcissa groaned, burying her face in her pillow. Bellatrix scoffed, stepping to the side as Andromeda opened the window for her owl to fly through.

"Cissy, get out of bed. It's gathering day; how could you forget?" Bella shook her head, pulling the blankets off of her younger sister. "Let me put it this way: Lucius will be there."

Narcissa bolted upright, a blush spreading across her face as the black-haired girl smirked at her reaction. "Oh, stop that," The blonde chastised her sister as she pulled on a robe. "How was I supposed to remember that it was today? Nobody keeps track of the days in summer!"

Bella started suddenly as Andromeda gasped loudly. "Bella-- Oh, Merlin-- Bella, look at this!" The sixteen year old spluttered, thrusting a newspaper at her older sister. "Muggle killings! Attacks on them, too, and in public places! Somebody called 'Lord Voldemort' is taking credit for it. He's killing mudbloods, as well!"

Bellatrix snatched the newspaper out of her sister's hands, rapidly scanning the page. "At least he's getting rid of some of those filthy muggle-borns," the black-haired girl muttered as she read. "He could be more subtle about it, though. If it wasn't so public he'd be able to get away with more. Or he could use dementors. Those'd sure cause panic."

Narcissa nodded along in agreement with her sister's words as Bella handed her the paper. "He has the right idea. Bit extreme if you ask me, though," The fifteen-year-old supplied, tossing the paper to the side. Bella smiled approvingly at her youngest sister as she pulled her hair up into a ponytail.

"Can Aunt Walburga and Uncle Orion make it to the gathering this year?" Andromeda asked as she sat down on the stool in front of the mirror. "Merlin, I hope Walburga doesn't show up. She's a witch, and I don't mean in the magical way."