Blacks Didn't Have Weaknesses

An eerie silence followed the exit of Barty Crouch Jr. His mother walked out sobbing holding her hand to her heart. Barty Crouch Sr. looked up after a couple of seconds looking years older. He glared at the three death eaters in front of him and began, "Bellatrix Black Lestrange, you are hereby charged with…."

Bellatrix Lestrange barely spared him a glance. She sat on her chair haughtily, like the Black she was and glared at everyone in the court room. She was still in shock at what had happened to her beloved master.

She just couldn't accept that the greatest wizard alive was defeated by an infant. A filthy half-blood at that. She wouldn't accept it. She knew her master was still alive somewhere. She just knew it.

She looked to her sides and saw Rodolphus staring blankly ahead, while Rabastan was staring nervously at everyone around him.

Those fools! Didn't they realize that they were going to be honored above all the others when their master rose again? They would be his most faithful! They were the only ones who went searching for him!

She shifted her glare from her spineless fools of a husband and brother in law to the stands. She looked at each member with disgust evident on her face until she saw her baby sister. Her blonde hair was pinned elegantly at the top of her head as usual.

She was sitting next to that traitor she calls a husband, her expression emotionless and icy as usual. Only someone who knew her as well as herself would notice how her jaw was slightly hardened, how her hand was slightly trembling, how she looked seconds away from bursting into tears. But she wouldn't and she knew that, because Blacks didn't cry.

"Do you deny it?" Crouch's voice was suddenly audible again. Bellatrix snapped her head to him and gave him the signature Black look. Her eyes briefly flickered back to Narcissa. Her eyes were silently pleading her to plead innocent. Her crystal blue eyes betrayed her fear of losing another sister.

-Flashback-

Narcissa Black walked into the Slytherin Common Room and appraised her elder sister coolly. "You didn't have to do that Bella," She said icily before gracefully sitting down on a plush green chair.

Bellatrix laughed, "Of course I did! No one messes with my baby sister and gets away with it!" Narcissa glared at her at the words 'baby sister'. She was only 3 years younger than her sister for Salazar's Sake! Bellatrix ignored the look she gave her and smiled slyly before continuing, "Besides, I needed an excuse to hex her."

Her sister snorted and gave her an incredulous look. "Since when did you ever need an excuse to hex someone?"

"Since that idiot McGonagall said if I was caught hexing anyone without a 'valid excuse', I'd be kicked out of here. Something about 'scaring away other students'," She huffed irritably.

Narcissa laughed as she got up to leave, just as she was about to reached her dorm she turned around and said an extremely rare thing for her, "Thanks Bella,"

Bella looked at her for a second and smiled at her. It wasn't one of those evil smiles that she gave someone before she hexed them. It wasn't even a sarcastic smile that she usually gave before a snarky remark. It was a real smile. "No problem Cissy. I'll always be here for you. I'll never leave."

Cissy looked at her older sister for a second before a real smile broke onto her face too and she gave her sister a tight hug. "You promise?" She whispered half anxiously. She knew how much Bella hated weaknesses and sappy moments.

Bella studied her baby sister for a moment before answering truthfully with no sign of sarcasm in her voice, "Course Cissy," She promised before giving her sister another rare smile.

-End Flashback-

Bellatrix Black (She never really considered herself a Lestrange. Rod was simply a tool to get into the Dark Lord's inner circle) looked at the floor hesitantly. Should she plead innocent and not break her promise? Should she proudly state her undying loyalty to the Dark Lord and be honored above all others?

She was indulged in guilt. She wanted to go to sister and hold her and tell her everything was going to be ok. But she didn't, because they would show weakness. And Blacks didn't have weaknesses. So, being the true Black she was, she pushed the feeling down and held her nose high.

"No I don't! The Dark Lord shall rise again! And I shall be his most faithful!" She shrieked with burning passion. She was pulling fruitlessly against the chains that bound her to the chair, trying to ignore the guilt that was gnawing her on the inside.

"All in favor of sentencing Bellatrix Lestrange to a lifetime in Azkaban," Her eyes barely registered everyone in the room raising their hands in approval. She was looking at her sister who had tears in her eyes. She knew perfectly well that her Cissy would never let those tears fall from her eyes, because showing emotions would be a weakness.

And Black's didn't have weaknesses.

Looking at her baby sister silently begging her not to go, she felt guilt coursing through her and she couldn't push it down. Not this time. For the first time in her life, she felt a pang of regret. She broke her promise to her sister. The only person besides the Dark Lord that she truly loved.

And as the dementors pulled her away, she did the only thing she could. She laughed. She laughed a high, cruel laugh that shook everyone to the core and had them shivering in fear. A laugh that expressed the regret that suddenly overcame her.

She laughed because if she didn't, she would cry.

And she couldn't do that. No, she couldn't. Crying was a sign of weakness.

And Blacks didn't have weaknesses.