Placing the colorful cube and flimsy wands within her robes, Bellatrix raised her wand and prepared to depart, prompting Rose to ask sharply, "You're leaving already?"
"Yes," Bellatrix said curtly. "Leo can get you home from here."
"How are we supposed to explain all of this to our parents?" Rose demanded.
"That is for you to figure out," Bellatrix smiled. "You can tell them the little you know about me, but remember that you are bound by oath to not discuss Harry. Do not even hint that Harry Ashworth is alive. Is that clear?"
"Yes," Leo said, resigned.
"I should hope so," Bellatrix stated smugly. "You swore on your magic, after all." With nagging apprehension, Bellatrix then quickly apparated away, appearing in Manchester outside of the flat she shared with Harry. She hoped that Ginny, Neville, and Harry had employed good sense and abandoned the rendezvous spot when Bellatrix and her charges failed to arrive in a timely manner.
Spotting Longbottom near the base of the stairs that led to the apartment, right arm at his side like someone warily palming a wand, Bellatrix was considerably-if somewhat inexplicably-relieved.
Neville spotted Bellatrix immediately. "Ginny and your house elf took your husband upstairs," he said evenly, approaching her somewhat slowly, wand still at his side, clearly not entirely trustful of Bellatrix.
"Good," Bellatrix replied, responding neutrally to Neville's defensive body language. "You're palming your wand. I approve. You seem at first blush to have a better grasp of proper dueling than Leo, Rose, or Ginny."
"Er, thank you," Neville replied uncertainly.
"I'll need to retrieve that worthless spare wand we lent you," Bellatrix added.
Never moving his right arm from his side, Neville reached under his robes and between his shoulder blades with his left hand, retrieving the spare wand and placing it into Bellatrix's extended left hand as she smiled approvingly. Mildly impressed with Neville, Bellatrix briefly considered inviting the Longbottom scion upstairs, but dismissed the idea when she saw no immediate benefit. "I'll send Ginny down, and you will be able to take her home, correct?"
"Yes, finally," Neville said gratefully, eager to end this experience.
After climbing the stairs and entering the apartment, Bellatrix found her husband asleep in their bed under the watch of Ginny Weasley, who sat on the edge of the bed next to Harry with a steaming mug of hot cocoa in her hands. Annoyed at the teenager's presumptuous familiarity with her husband, Bellatrix paused to consider the Weasley daughter. With reflective disdain- overlaid atop a thin sheen of envy-Bellatrix noted Ginny's buxom chest and full figure, pondering Ginny's long auburn tress and open face with an annoyingly elusive sense of recognition. Then Bellatrix heard Harry's voice in her head as the revelation hit her. My best mate's little sister, Harry had called her. She'd died during the course of the Lost War with Riddle. But she and Harry had also dated.
Bellatrix inhaled sharply, hissing faintly as a flood of alarm and jealousy rose rapidly within her chest, quickly drowning disdain and envy both. Startled by the sound, Ginny quickly stood and turned to look into Lady Black's glaring face. Nearly spilling the cup of cocoa as she rose and whirled, Ginny immediately began explaining herself.
"I got him into bed, and he said he might like a cup of hot cocoa, and when I got back from making it, he had fallen asleep, and I wanted to make sure he was alright," Ginny blurted before setting the mug down on the bedside table. Averting her eyes, Ginny brushed past Bellatrix, heading straight for the apartment door as she added, "I think I need to get going."
"I should say so," Bellatrix responded quietly.
Walking to a living room window at the front of the apartment, Bellatrix watched Ginny exit the entry at the base of the stairs. Ginny grasped Neville's hand quickly, and to his very apparent surprise kissed him deeply and fiercely, before both teens disappeared with the audible pop of side-along apparition.
Bloody hell, Bellatrix realized, annoyed that she had let herself be distracted, I forgot to take back that ginger hussy's cube! And the spare wand, as well! Some dispassionate Slytherin you are! Berating herself silently for several minutes, Bellatrix finally reflected resignedly, Can't do anything about the wand. Piece of garbage, anyway. Who in Merlin's name makes wands in bulk? But losing that cube could be a pain in the ass. Reviewing its protections in her head, however, she reassured herself. Good thing Harry's friend was clever enough to design those cubes with all those devilishly clever failsafe charms. Even if they still lost their war against Riddle.
With a sigh, Bellatrix turned from the window and returned to the bedroom. Spotting the mug of cocoa left by Ginny, Bellatrix sniffed it carefully. Detecting nothing amiss, Bellatrix nevertheless took the mug to the kitchen and poured the cocoa down the drain. Reflecting on the long night they'd had with a final shrug, Bellatrix locked up the apartment and slipped into bed, snuggling up to Harry.
....
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