Upon entering their library, the Lestrange Three found Lyra, Lucius, and Narcissa having tea. Rhadamanthus, who they'd left to guard the manor, was hunched in the corner, holding a huge book of maps in his two front legs.
"You're home early," Lyra exclaimed with a pleased smile. Then worry clouded her eyes as her face fell. "You're never home this early! Is anything wrong?"
"Not this time," Rabastan said with a grin. "The Aurors are going to meet us at Malfoy Manor at eleven, and we're all helping to place the wards. They don't have time to spare so everyone needs to contribute."
That should be obvious, but Bellatrix knew it was wise of Rabastan to state the obvious before Lucius opened his mouth to complain, and she had to smack him.
"Oh, that's nice," Narcissa said, relief all over her face. Bellatrix gave her sister a slight smile. Of course Cissie, would want to be back in her own home where everything was familiar and comforting during these trying times.
"Whatever is wrong, Bella," Narcissa asked, expression growing alarmed as she took Bellatrix in.
Bellatrix made a face. Did it show that much? Sighing, she flopped into the nearest chair. Rodolphus came to stand behind her, strong hands falling onto her shoulders and beginning to massage.
"I don't want to talk about it," Bellatrix said. Giving a sigh of pleasure, she leaned into Rodolphus's touch. His strong fingers worked relentlessly at the knots in her shoulders, and she closed her eyes as the tension flowed out of her. Rodolphus didn't give tension a choice, Bellatrix thought, a small smile curving her lips.
"I love you," she murmured and Rod chuckled.
"You too. Always." He kissed the top of her head, and the heat from his lips caused her lower belly to tighten with sudden desire.
"So you can tell me here, or I drag you upstairs and make you do it in private," Narcissa said sweetly. "Which shall it be?"
Bella sighed, casting her sister a resentful glance. "I was hoping Rod would be the one dragging me upstairs."
"Sounds good," he growled, hands sliding from Bellatrix's shoulders to caress their way down her arms.
"Bella," Narcissa warned.
"I'm on Aunt Cissie's side," Lyra at last chimed in. "What's the matter?"
Bellatrix hadn't wanted to go into the uncomfortable lady's room incident in front of Lucius. It was too painful, and too personal, and opened up too many insecurities she wasn't aware she had. She didn't like Lucy Malfoy enough to show him that, but Cissie and Lyra's persistence sparked her temper, annoying her into answering.
"Just some cows mooing in the lady's today at the Ministry," she snapped.
"About what?" Lyra demanded.
"About you," Narcissa asked when Bellatrix didn't respond immediately.
Sighing, she nodded tightly.
"Well, considering the wild past you Lestranges have, can you honestly blame them," Lucius asked smoothly. He arched a brow at Bellatrix, and, as could be expected, this sparked her anger.
"Have you ever actually had fun, Lucius," she asked. Standing before he could reply, she shook her head. "Never mind, of course, you haven't."
With that she strode from the room and upstairs. She couldn't look at Lucius any more right now. She heard feet on the stairs behind her as she headed for her bedroom, hoping it was Rodolphus while suspecting it was her sister and daughter. Unfortunately, her suspicions proved to be correct.
"What did they say, Bella," Cissie asked, as Bellatrix pushed open the door to her bedroom.
"It must really be something if you actually cared," Lyra added in a worried tone. "I'm the only one who gets to be snarky to you, so if they were mean, I can go up there and let them have it."
"There's a girl," Narcissa praised her niece.
"Rod already told them about themselves, and probably gave them nightmares for a month too," Bellatrix said with a chuckle as she moved further into the room. With a sigh she turned to face her daughter and sister as Lyra closed the bedroom door.
"It's just that...well, I can't honestly imagine you in need of defending, Bella," Narcissa said gently as she approached her sister. "You terrify everyone...that is, you always manage to hold your own in a fight," she explained, her lips twitching as Lyra snickered. "Right now, though, you look shaken up, and that has me worried." The look of concern on her face caused Bellatrix to scowl.
"I don't need defending. I was fine. Rod simply took it upon himself to..."
"Well, what did they say?" Lyra interrupted impatiently. The girl was actually bouncing up and down on her toes as if Bellatrix were withholding some monumental bit of news.
With a sigh of resignation, Bellatrix briefly summarized the comments the cows had made in the lady's. She found herself toying with her skirt as she spoke, for something to do with her hands. "I don't know why it got to me like that," she admitted with an exasperated shake of her head. "It was stupid."
"Well, I'm glad Dad put them in their place," Lyra said, then frowned. "You know when I was angry with you, I was all set to call the two of you Bio-Mom and Bio-Dad… Getting trashed with you like friends and looking into your memories sort of wrecked that," she said, sighing and making a face.
"So sorry, but not," Bellatrix said drily, glad for the subject change.
"But Bella! Why ever would you think that you are a problem for Rod," Narcissa asked, dropping a warm hand onto Bellatrix's shoulder.
"For sure," Lyra quipped, waggling her eyebrows at her mother. "He's almost as crazy as you, after all."
Bellatrix felt her eyes glazing over, a small smile turning up the corners of her lips as she fondly recalled those times when Rod had lost control with her while torturing someone. He was always so deliberate with his violence, but sometimes their fervor caused him to hit that delicious high peak and cross that line she always knew was there, and it made the experience all the more heady. His movements became more violent and less deliberate. His eyes lost that steady gaze and went wild, and he could quickly press a mark or Muggle far beyond their point of endurance in less than a minute.
"Mum?" Lyra called, waving a hand in front of Bellatrix's eyes.
"Yes?" Bellatrix replied.
"What's going on," Lyra asked.
"I am simply recalling how your father..."
"No! Never mind!" Lyra interrupted hastily.
"It wasn't about shagging," Bellatrix assured with a chuckle. "Not yet." She looked to Narcissa and sighed, shrugging as she finally answered her sister's question. "I don't know why I let the cows make me wonder if I was a problem for Rod. I never thought I was, but I never thought anyone else thought I could be either. It was always the Lestranges as a group that everyone wisely feared. This time, though, they put a spin on us that surprised me. Hearing that they believed Rod was being dragged down by me, and I was the bad one was just… I don't know, a bit jarring."
She didn't say that Rod had been annoyed with her lately over what he considered to be her unnecessary upset about things that hadn't even occurred with the Dark Lord. Somehow all that felt too private to share with even her sister and daughter. It was between her and Rod. She knew that he'd been hurt by Voldemort as much as she had, and that while she may be overly emotional about it, he was bottling. Pushing him before he was ready would not be good, though, and if he was keeping his inner balance up better than she was hers, more power to him for as long as it lasted.
"Well, I don't think Lucius would've actually bothered to speak to those women had it been us in your place," Narcissa said quietly. "I know he loves me, but I want to cheer for the loud and proud way Rodolphus shows the world that he loves you!" She threw her arms around Bellatrix in a warm, sudden embrace. "Know that he loves you very much, Sister. It's quite obvious."
"I know that he does," Bellatrix said, swallowing as she squeezed Cissie back hard. It felt good, if strange, to hold her sister close. She toyed with the idea of telling Narcissa that she'd get her her magic back. She remained silent, though, because if she did, she'd have to insist that Cissie not breathe a word to Lucius and how fair was that?
Lucius was her husband. Somehow she'd found something in him worth loving, and Bellatrix didn't want to drive a wedge between them when she could help her sister without clueing her in on things that the new Minister wouldn't want Lucius knowing. She could hardly blame Kereston for that. Lucius was no champion of goblins or elves, and the idea of them working jobs that respectable wizards used to have, only a week ago, would set his blood to boiling. Bellatrix couldn't help but smile at the picture that sprang to her mind.
She'd never been as bigoted as Lucy, but she still stood with him on the same side of the fence in most matters, as did Rodolphus and Rabastan. Rod liked working with the goblins and elves at Azkaban, though, respecting their skills more and more. Bellatrix found herself more thoughtfully indifferent on the matter where she may have once resisted. What the Dark Lord had become, plus Delphini's existence, tended to put most other things in a better light and give one perspective.
"So is everything all good now,"Rod asked in a muffled voice, speaking from the other side of the closed door.
"How long were you listening?" Bellatrix said with a chuckle.
"Most of the time," Rodolphus replied unabashedly.
"Everything was always fine, but I think these two hens are finally satisfied," Bellatrix replied.
Lyra made a mock clucking sound as Rodolphus opened the door and came in. "Good," he said, catching Bellatrix in his arms, and covering her in a passionate kiss that had her melting against him.
Narcissa let out a shocked squawk and backed hastily out of the room with Lyra at her side. One of them banged the door shut behind them, and Bellatrix gave a low laugh as she twined her fingers in Rodolphus's short, dark wavy hair to draw him closer. He growled with desire against her mouth as their bodies pressed full length together. They tugged at one another's clothes, stumbling toward the neatly made bed between impassioned kisses.
Soon Bella was stretched out on her back atop the dark green coverlet with Rodolphus's gloriously muscular body looming over her. Her breath caught with anticipation as her gaze hungrily drank him in. His mouth claimed hers as he slid his impressive length into her. As his hips rocked deliciously, her eyes fluttered closed in pleasure, and she whispered, "Crucio."
His head flung back in pleasure and one hand tangled in her hair as he replied in kind. "Crucio." Delicious tingles of pain tangled with her building orgasm as he drove into her.