Chapter 7

Revelations and Realizations

Seeing Rodolphus again left Bella feeling confident and renewed. Since their meeting, everything felt perfect, and she was sure that nothing would be able to ruin her euphoria. The way the students laughed and talked, gossiped and cuddled; none of it fazed her in the slightest. And to top it all off, she heard a familiar voice from behind her.

"Hey! Aurelia!" Harry was running to catch up to her, his hands holding his robe to keep himself from tripping. Coming to a stop, Bella turned to face him, a small smile etched onto her face. "How about that date now? Or have you not met your parents yet?" He asked, his pale face flushed a deep shade of red from his run. She had trouble suppressing a giggle as she studied his disheveled appearance. But Bellatrix Lestrange did not giggle at seventh year boys. Especially not Harry Potter.

"And what did you have in mind?" she asked, running a hand through her hair as she took a step toward him. What a perfect opportunity to continue in her attempt at winning the boy's heart. Or at least, to make him think that his heart belonged to her. Whatever would make him trust her fully, and although her Lord had only told her to befriend him, friendliness wasn't exactly her strong point. But after she'd snogged him silly, the least the puny boy could do was share his deepest secrets with her. That was a fair trade, wasn't it?

"We could go somewhere to eat," he suggested with a light shrug. "Or just go for a walk."

The latter sounded promising. There would be less people around, making it easier to spend time with him alone. She would hate to happen upon the rest of his golden trio. The thought of the bushy haired girl and fiery redheaded boy made her sick to her stomach. "A walk sounds nice," she replied, reaching a hand out to ruffle his hair. She froze as she felt him flinch at her touch, as if he was repulsed by her or something of the sort. "Are you ok?" she asked, her voice slightly shaky. His response to her flirting was like a wake up call to her. What if this didn't work? What if she failed her master? She couldn't blow this. Not now.

"I-I'm...I'm fine," he managed, despite his struggle for words. "I'm sorry," he added, lowering his voice as he moved into her body, wrapping his arms around her waist. Their eyes connected for a moment, in their gaze was a mixture of so many emotions that it was incomprehensible. In that one look, they had revealed all their hidden emotions. The lies, the secrets, the hatred, the feigned compassion. And yet, as Bella saw the mixed emotions in Harry's emerald eyes, she failed to interpret their meaning. Rather, she was left with an odd feeling in the pit of her stomach. And then, his lips captured hers, and she felt herself relaxing into the kiss. Shutting her eyes, she wrapped her arms around his neck and leaned into him. Her heart fluttered in her chest as Harry pulled away a moment later for a breath, though his face was still dangerously close to hers.

She swallowed in between breaths, as if the break would help her find words. "It's ok," she finally managed, trying to regain her composure. Maybe seduction hadn't been the best plan of attack, for it seemed as if it was backfiring. Rather than rendering Harry speechless with her bewitching charm, he was taking control of her. It was one thing to be taken by surprise by his sudden kiss. That was acceptable. But it was another to stand there with her mouth open like a fool, unable to even speak afterward. She was a pathetic excuse for a human being.

The part that worried her the most though, was the feeling she'd felt when Harry had kissed her. She didn't even feel that way when Rodolphus kissed her. What did it mean? That she'd actually enjoyed the kiss? It couldn't be. Harry Potter was her ultimate enemy. There was no other person she'd rather see dead, not even his two obnoxious sidekicks. Perhaps it was just her way of showing her surprise. After all, she most definitely had not been expecting him to kiss her right there and then. Especially not after he'd flinched at her touch.

But the surprises were not over. The warring inside of Bella's head was disrupted by a gentle shove. Without thinking, she let Harry guide her a few feet back, toward the side of the building they had been standing near. She shivered as she felt her back collide with the cool brick of the wall, and her mind immediately flashed back to the dream she'd had nearly a week earlier. Only this time, it was real.

Her heart was pounding wildly in her chest as Harry caressed her lips with his own. Unlike her dream, she didn't put up a struggle or even make an attempt to move. Instead, she melted into his body, giving in to the kiss. His hand was beneath the back of her shirt now, his mouth exploring her own.

And then suddenly, it was over. He pulled his mouth and body away from hers, and the sudden absence of his body made her feel a coldness that had nothing to do with temperature. Blinking, she slapped herself mentally. She wasn't about to stand there like an idiot this time.

"I've never seen that side of you before," she said, toying at the front of his robes. Then without warning, she grabbed his robes and spun around so that he was pinned against the wall this. A small smirk spread onto her face as she noticed his shock at her sudden move. Two could play this game, and she wasn't about to let this boy control her.

Leaning in, she planted kisses along his neck and jaw before pulling back and looking at his face. Her playful smirk had disappeared at this point, and her face was stony and serious. "Now," she said, her voice matter of fact, "You are going to stop toying with me, and tell me what it is you want. Do you want me? Or do you just want me for the occasional snog and then leave me guessing? Just tell me now!" She shook the front of his robes, baring her teeth in frustration and exasperation.

Harry remained silent for a moment. Bella had no idea what was running through his head at this point, but it was obvious that he was deep in thought. Why should he even have to think over it? He was supposed to be able to tell her right away that he wanted her, no question. If only she knew of the conflict in his mind, his knowledge that he was kissing a woman he'd sought revenge against for the past two years. If only she knew. It would make her job a hell of a lot easier.

"I do," he said finally, softly. "I do want you. No more games."

"Good," she replied, loosening her grip on his robes. Her facial expression softened a bit. At least that was settled. Maybe alone time wasn't exactly the best thing for them at the moment. Within the next hour, Harry would probably dead. Of course, that idea sounded quite appealing, except for the fact that her master had explicitly told her not to harm Harry Potter. So harm him she would not. "You know, I'm actually rather hungry now that I think about it," she said simply, taking a step back away from him. Their eyes connected, emotions hidden well behind them this time.

"Alright. Let's go."

"What? The new girl?" Parvati seemed bewildered. "Why her? And didn't he just break up with Hermione?"

"I knew you fancied him!" Lavender giggled, combing a hand through her hair.

"Well, a bit, but what was I supposed to do? I had to give him some time after Hermione, and then he goes up and hooks up with that slut?"

"We all knew it was an easy break up. You should have made your move." Lavender was now frowning at herself in the mirror, teasing her hair in attempt to make it look absolutely perfect.

"But why her? She's so quiet, and then when she does talk she's so bitter," Parvati frowned, examining her nails as an attempt to calm herself. "Such a bitch."

Bella bit her lower lip in anger. And she was the bitch? She hated those filthy gossiping Gryffindor girls who had nothing better to do than talk about everyone else and their flaws. She could go on and on about their flaws, but of course she would never do that because it was a waste of time. "You're more of a slut than I'll ever be," Bella spat, entering the room and walking over to her bed. Grabbing her quill and parchment, she then quickly strode out of the room, leaving the two girls with their mouths hanging open in astonishment. Not everyone was going to accept her relationship with Harry, but she could care less. All that mattered was that he was beginning to trust her. At least, she hoped he was.

The next morning at breakfast, the owls swarmed into the Great Hall and dropped their papers and letters as usual. Hermione's face brightened significantly as she read the headline on the cover page of the Daily Prophet. "Harry, look!" she exclaimed, shoving the paper in his face.

Bella watched carefully as he read over the article, a smile spreading onto his face. She froze when he looked up from the paper and at her. Rolling the paper up, he tossed it across the table to Bella. Unfolding it, she looked down at the headline, doing her best to hide her shock. "Exciting, isn't it?" Bella looked up at Harry as he spoke, and the knowing look on her face truly frightened her. Did he know? He couldn't possibly.

Taking a deep breath, she loosened her grip on the paper when she realized she had nearly ripped it. She couldn't let her nervousness show. Maybe he didn't know. After years of breaking laws, she'd learned that when you were guilty, it always seemed to you as if you'd been discovered. And yet half of the time, they had no clue that it was you who committed the crime. The other half, well, you weren't so lucky.

Death Eater Lestrange, Found and Captured

Last night, death eater Rodolphus Lestrange was captured in the outskirts of the forest near Hogsmeade. He has been sent to a prison in an unnamed location due to the recent breakout in Azkaban. Lestrange was found alone, though the area is currently being searched for signs of any other death eaters, and hopes of recapturing the escapees of Azkaban remain high. As for wife, Bellatrix Lestrange, she has not been sighted since two years ago, when...

Bella didn't even bother to read the rest. Her heart was beating a mile a minute, and she could feel Harry's cold stare fixed upon her, boring into her. Daring to look up, she forced a smile. "We can only hope they'll find the rest of them," she said, gulping as she took a sip of her juice.

Yesterday evening. Near Hogsmeade. She'd been with Rodolphus only a few hours before he'd been captured, most likely. The person in the bushes must have known who he was and then alerted the ministry of his whereabouts. Although she didn't have proof, she knew it was Harry. The way he had 'happened' to find her after her meeting with Rodolphus. The way he had left to get something just before they'd left for Hogsmeade. When he'd run back to get his scarf at the end of their trip to Hogsmeade, he'd probably gone to get his invisibility cloak that he'd been forced to hide somewhere. That was how he'd followed and spied on her. It all made sense now. Harry Potter knew who she was, and that was dangerous. She would not run away though. She would not fail her Lord so miserably yet again. But she needed to find some way to alert him of the danger she was in. Surely any owl she sent would be intercepted. Until she figured out a way to communicate her discovery to him, she needed to continue as if nothing had happened.

"I'm full. I think I'm going to go back up to the common room." Bella announced, her voice sounding as if everything was normal. Harry, Hermione and Ron all gave her a slight nod.

"Bye." Harry said, catching Bella's eyes with his own. The emotions were all there this time; the hatred, the lies, the secrets, the truth. And this time, Bella knew exactly what they meant.

"Do you think she knows?" Hermione whispered, leaning in towards Ron and Harry as soon as Bellatrix had left the Great Hall.

"I don't know... don't you think we should do something about it?" Ron asked, stuffing a fork full of food into his mouth in an attempt to calm his worry.

"No," Harry replied sternly. "Dumbledore's probably got something planned."

"But that's assuming she doesn't realize that we know who she is! What if she's figured it out?" Hermione reasoned. She didn't seem to be willing to let the subject go.

"I doubt she knows," Harry lied. He still hadn't told Hermione and Ron that he'd been the one who'd helped the ministry find Rodolphus. As far as they knew, it had been an anonymous tip. "She seems completely normal around me."

Hermione gave a resignated sigh. Ever since they'd found out that Aurelia was actually Bellatrix Lestrange, she'd done her best to avoid arguing with Harry. There was something extra going on with him now though, she could sense it. "Wait a second. Do you think the Ministry is on to her too? I mean, if they found Rudolphus yesterday after Hogsmeade, maybe they saw him meeting with Bellatrix. She obviously was meeting with him rather than her family, right? So what do you think will happen? The Ministry would never let a death eater walk around Hogwarts freely."

Harry sighed. He couldn't really explain it to her unless he told her that he'd been the one who saw the two of them meet. Right now, he really wasn't up for explaining it either. "Let's just drop it, ok?" he asked, his tone portraying his obvious irritation with her. "I'm going to go up to the common room now. See you both later."

Getting up from the table, Harry walked toward the large doorway of the Great Hall, thinking carefully over what he would do next. Bellatrix wasn't completely dim, so it was obvious that by now she knew that he knew who she was. He had to be cautious now. Obviously if she hadn't harmed him thus far, she wasn't going to anytime soon.

When he really thought about it, there was nothing left for him to do now other than turn her in. Confronting her about who she was would be too dangerous. On the other hand, though, he had no desire to be rid of her yet. There was something inside him that was urging him to keep her around. He could just keep the game going for a little longer, for what reason he was unsure of. Keeping such a hated enemy close to him was comforting somehow. Perhaps it was the feeling of having her at his own will, firmly within his grasp. Or perhaps he was actually coming to enjoy the intimacy that they were sharing. No to the latter. He was using her, and she was using him, simple as that. Bellatrix Lestrange was his sworn enemy, and there was no way that was going to change. Not now, not ever.

A/N: Wow, it's been ages since I've updated this story. I've been meaning to do it for so long, but it had already been so long that I felt like I didn't even remember where I was heading with the story anymore. I'm happy to say that I've come up with some ideas now, so hopefully I'll continue to update it regularly from now on.

Sorry if some parts don't fit with earlier parts of the story, I did my best to pick up from where I left off. Thanks to everyone who has waited so patiently for an update, and I hope you're still interested over a year later!