Chapter 14: Explanations

Once the spell was cast Bellatrix dropped her glamour, "Hello Cissy."

Narcissa gasped seeing Bellatrix in front of her. Harry looked concerned, perhaps frightened that Narcissa was about to faint. Bellatrix on the other hand grinned and walked closer.

"So, my dear ex-husband is looking for me? The bastard who raped my mind and my body in order to make me a soldier is wondering where his dear little Bella ran off to?" Her voice was cold enough to make the woman sitting before her shudder. "Did he send you to find me?"

"No Bellatrix, I promise you. After his threat I just wanted to find somewhere safe. I swear on my magic I had no idea you were here. Potter never said-"

"Harry."

"What?"

"His name is Harry. Not 'Potter', if you can't call him by his name then you will call him the title he deserves, 'Lord Potter-Black'." Narcissa looked from Bellatrix to Harry, Why was she so defensive of him? "Very well, Harry, did not tell me you were here. He didn't say anyone was here. When we spoke at Gringotts, it was only about my books, and the possibility of my tutoring him during the summer."

Bellatrix looked to Harry for a moment, her expression unreadable to Narcissa, then turned back, smiling at her youngest sister. "Yes, Harry told me about that, he said that I was to also look at the papers. He wanted a second point of view. He must have been worried that you were more Malfoy than Black now," Bellatrix crossed the difference and leaned in to Narcissa face, "You weren't planning on finding any sorts of loopholes that would've given you control over the family vault now would you?"

Harry placed a hand on Bellatrix's shoulder before she could go any further, at his touch, Narcissa noticed, Bellatrix seemed to calm down slightly. Bellatrix straightened up and stepped away, looking to Harry, "I'll be in the library, if you think anything is wrong call for me."

Now it was just Harry and Narcissa. Harry looked to her, "I suppose the first thing we should do is get you settled and then go to the study. Hermione will be here later to pick up her books, I doubt we'll get much work done once she knows that you're here."

"You will honor the bargain though, Lord Potter-Black? You will annul my marriage to Lucius?" This was the only way Narcissa saw herself surviving, especially now. She had sworn an oath to keep the secrets she had witnessed. If Rodolphus didn't kill her for keeping them, Bellatrix certainly would for breaking the trust.

"I promise, we'll go back to Gringotts tomorrow morning." That promise from Harry seemed to reassure her, at least somewhat. They made their way to the study to being the lessons for the day.

Hearing them at work Bellatrix put back on her glamour and silently left Grimmauld Place. Rodolphus has to be stopped. That thought drove her to Diagon Alley and then into Knockturn Alley.

She got lucky, Rodolphus was coming out of a bar, hidden in a glamour that she recognized. She lowered her hood and walked towards him, "Hello handsome."

Rodolphus had been stymied all day trying to find a trace of Bellatrix. When he left the pub he was in a foul mood, even several shots of firewhiskey hadn't eased his temper, This girl is pretty, I wonder if she's a screamer...He grinned lecherously and then turned it into what he hoped would pass for flirtatious.

"Hello yourself, what's a beautiful woman like you doing on a dangerous street like this?" Bellatrix's grin turned almost predatory, "I was just looking for a man like you, my lover is a weak, foolish man, and you look like the perfect person to work out my aggression with.."

Maybe my luck is turning around..Rodolphus thought as the woman led him to a darkened corner of the alley.

Several hours later a group of Aurors were called in to the site of a murder. Kingsley Shacklebolt was among them, the body had been subjected to several cutting and burning curses but he could at least recognize the face. Someone killed Rodolphus LeStrange..I hope it was someone on our side, but looking at this mess, I doubt it..Something about this made Kingsley nervous, someone had absolutely slaughtered a Death Eater.

Bellatrix had completely missed Hermiones appearance. But from the look on Harry's face it was clear that she hadn't approved of the appearance of Narcissa Malfoy, and had made that particular thought very clear. Harry came to find her back in the library, it was now bare of every book except for the one she had asked him to keep out for her.

"Where have you been? We didn't know you'd left until I went to ask what you wanted for lunch."

"I took care of something, you and Cissy will both thank me when you read the Daily Prophet." That seemed ominous to Harry.

"You went looking for LeStrange." It wasn't a question, and she knew that.

"I did. I found him too. Needless to say he wasn't prepared for a silence charm, or a restraining charm, or any of the other hexes I cast." She seemed proud of herself, "The aurors will need a mop and a shovel to deal with him."

Narcissa heard Bellatrix and Harry talking. As she walked to the doorway she heard Bellatrix declaration. She killed Rodolphus. Now the dark lord will be hunting us even harder. There's no way he'll believe that it was a random murder. For the first time in many years, Narcissa was concerned for the safety of her elder sister. Harry noticed Narcissa standing there and beckoned her into the room with them. "Well I guess that means you're safe from him now, if you want, you can go back home to Malfoy Manor."

"I could, but I won't. There is no way that Voldemorte won't suspect who did this. He has his own spies in the Ministry, they will suspect that I or Bellatrix killed him. So, I still need your protection my Lord."

At that moment Harry heard a voice from the fireplace in the study. "Harry, you in? It's me Tonks, there's been a murder in Knockturn Alley and the Order needs to have an emergency meeting."