Chapter 9: IXChapter TextHermione's foot tapped the ground quickly, her entire leg shaking, and her heart beat at a much too fast pace as she leaned against the wall of Slytherin's part of the pitch. They'd fly out through the entrance on Hermione's left, and overtop the field while the school observed below before they all fell into formation.
The other six members of the team listened as Steve prattled on about last minute reminders, and the more he talked about Quidditch the more he reminded Hermione of Oliver Wood. She couldn't help but wonder if Steve would try to drown himself in the showers as well if she messed this match up. The thought did nothing to calm her racing nerves as she rested her head back against the wall with her eyes squeezed shut.
"As funny as I'd think it'd be if you passed out, you should probably take a breath," a voice from Hermione's right said, and she didn't need to open her eyes to know Bellatrix had moved to stand beside her, forgoing listening to Steve talk strategies to talk to her (or mock her, more like it). "Why are you nervous? It's only the entire school watching your every move."
"I'm really not in the mood for this, Bellatrix," Hermione said, her voice barely above a whisper. It was nearly impossible to drown out the sounds of the raucous students on the stands outside, all of them impatiently waiting for the game to begin. How did her friends do this all the time? It really felt like her heart was about to combust and she'd instantaneously die.
Bellatrix made a noise that sounded suspiciously like a snort, but moved to stand closer to Hermione. "You need to take your mind off of the game. You know what to do, you're stressing over nothing right now."
"That's pretty much what I do."
"Oh, I'm aware. Think of something else," Bellatrix said, her voice dipping into that near mocking tone she so favored when talking to Hermione. "Like... how much better I am than you at Transfiguration, or Defense Against the Dark Arts, or- really anything, actually. Maybe think about the obese Brownie. How much he adores me and despises you."
Had it been any other morning, had it just been Bellatrix ridiculing her for no reason, Hermione most likely would have become furious and started arguing back. But she wasn't too far lost in her stress and worry to not recognize this for what it was; Bellatrix's attempt to distract her from her nerves. And it was working, if only because-
"He's not obese," Hermione defended Fatty, and she could feel the corners dipping up into a little smile. Fatty was most definitely as his named implied, the the last few days they had spent feeding him, he guzzled down milk and scarfed down every last bite of food. And still completely ignored Hermione existed, unless she was the one holding the bottle. "And you aren't better at our coursework either."
"But he still likes me more." Bellatrix's voice was sing-song like now, her face split into a wide grin that was nothing short of vicious beauty. Her hair was pulled into a braid once more, her uniform tight fitting, molded against all her hard earned muscles. "And I am a better dueler."
That much was true, though Hermione would never say that out loud. There was just something so... savagely elegant about how Bellatrix duels. Nothing like the organized and well planned battles they learned about in Defense Against the Dark Arts, and something worse than when Hermione had faced other Death Eaters or Snatchers. It had taken an army of top ranking Aurors to capture her for the torture of Frank and Alice Longbottom, and even then not many Ministry workers had walked away from that fight unscathed.
"I thought you were supposed to be making me feel better," Hermione responded with a roll of her eyes. "All you're doing is inflating your already large ego."
Bellatrix had no time to reply, as Steve instructed them to mount their brooms moments before the announcer called Slytherin to enter the pitch, and all seven of them kicked off of the ground to fly into the air.
Hermione's hands were sweating inside her leather gloves as she came to a halt beside Bellatrix and Sebastian, all three of them waiting for the release of the Quaffle so they could begin their play. Steve had given Hermione a relatively simple job; if she gets the ball, throw it to one of the other chasers. Otherwise, she was supposed to stay out of the way as long as possible.
Her pride might have been hurt had she not agreed with Steve. She'd been practicing with Bellatrix, and then as well with the team, but what was one week of practices compared to the team's years of playing together? And Gryffindor's years of playing with each other as well. Hermione was the outlier here, both in her lack of skill and her considerably less amount of air time to everyone else.
Daniel was a reflection of Hermione on the field, in the same position and side, and he gave her a friendly nod as everyone watched the ref walk onto the ground in the center and open the chest. A moment after the ref blew her whistle, she released the bludgers first, and both beaters on either team soared upwards to chase the vicious balls. Hermione tightened her hands around the broom as the ref went to toss the Quaffle into the air, and right as the six chasers made to go after it, Hermione swore she heard Bellatrix say, "Good luck, Hermione," before the dark haired witch went flying to be the first to grab the large ball.
Playing a real game was so, so different than practice with the team and with Bellatrix. Both types of practices were fast paced, and her teammates did not go too easy on her, especially Bellatrix, but it ended up being nothing compared to playing against people that had no problems hurting her a bit to secure a goal.
And it seemed Hermione was the target today.
More than once in the short time since the game began did she narrowly avoid a bludger to the face, despite her not yet having the Quaffle. It was still in Slytherin's possession, bouncing back and forth between the other two chasers, but an opening to score hadn't presented itself yet. That did nothing to sway Gryffindor from aiming at her, and it got to the point Steve called for a time out when she once again was nearly knocked from her broom.
"They're being bloody fucking vicious today," he said once they all huddled up on the ground, Gryffindor in their own group across the pitch. "They're being smart, they know you're a last resort. If they get rid of you, we forfeit for the rest of the season." Steve frowned and looked around the team, before his gaze settled on Bellatrix. "I have an idea. It could absolutely break us, but-"
"Let's do it," their keeper nodded his head, all of them desperate to score and end the game. "We're barely making any progress. Whatever you have in mind, we might as well try. Teach those dirty lions a lesson."
Steve explained quickly, and oh, Hermione could not say she liked it. She hadn't practiced for this. She had practiced for getting the ball and tossing it to one of their better players. Their captain ran off to tell the ref their adjusted lineup, and though Hermione could see the professor frowning, she did nod her head in acceptance.
When the whistle blew once more, Hermione held one of the bats in her hand, and now raced alongside one of the beaters, the second one now holding Hermione's original place between Bellatrix and Sebastian. Steve had given her one when he relayed his hastily made plan: "teach those fucks a lesson, Potter," and explained that if they wanted to throw bludgers at her all day, she'd be throwing her own right back.
It was a shot in the dark that the ref would agree, as even though it wasn't terribly unheard of for players to switch positions, it was very rare indeed. However, Steve had pointed out nothing in the rules said they couldn't. And so the ref had to agree, and now Hermione was swerving through the air, tracking the opposing team's beaters and chasers, while also keeping the bludgers in mind.
There.
One of the nasty balls came flying past her, and she swung wildly at it.
And missed.
The extortion of swinging the bat caused her to become wobbly on her broom, and it took a moment to reclaim her balance. When she saw Gryffindor laugh at her clumsiness, well...
They might have been her true house, but right in this moment she was going to teach them a lesson.
The next time one of the bludgers arced by her, she did not miss. And the laughing chaser holding the Quaffle, heading right for Slytherin's goal, her house's goalpost, did not see the ball until it slammed right into his back.
Slytherin cheered, all across the stadium, everyone yelled at the bark of pain the Gryffindor gave as he dropped the Quaffle, Bellatrix quick to fly underneath him and rip it from the air before she darted off to the opposite side of the field.
Hermione was too focused on following the bludgers, her other beater teammate close by, offering last minute instructions, to watch what Bellatrix did, but by their house yelling once more, she knew they had finally scored.
Let the game begin for real then.
She no longer felt nervous about being on a broom, and was determined to make everyone watching realize she belonged here just like everyone else.
Hogsmeade weekend still brought a sense of joy to all of the students, who all seemed inclined to forget the tragedy that befell the sleepy little town, as nearly everyone from their year was dressed out of their robes and itching to leave the castle.
Hermione was as excited as the rest of the students, and rushed through showering the sweat from the match off of her and changing back into her clothes, before meeting Andromeda and Ted in the courtyard. Bellatrix and Narcissa were nowhere to be found, though Hermione knew they'd be running into the other Black sisters sooner or later, seeing as Bellatrix had weirdly asked if Hermione would be present today.
"Bloody good match, Hermione." Ted high fived her when she walked up to them, and she couldn't keep the smile off of her face as they followed the large group of students in the direction of the village. "I gotta admit, there were a couple times I thought you were gonna take a bludger to the face!"
Everyone had been talking about Steve's last minute plan to switch Hermione to a beater, and she had shocked them all by being much better at that than a chaser. So many members of Slytherin had come up to her afterwards to congratulate her on a hard-won match, and she couldn't keep the smile from her face the entire time.
It only widened when Bellatrix approached, her braid mostly disbanded and pieces of hair sticking to her sweaty forehead as she bumped her shoulder into Hermione's in passing and called, "You're welcome for all that training, little rat." But her laugh was real, and her eyes twinkled with- well, that looked like pride, before she walked away to join others.
"I thought you were going to fall off your broom," Andromeda laughed, as supportive as ever, even as she slipped her arm around Hermione's to walk together. "In fact, I even bet with Bella you'd fall. Man, I owe her money."
"You bet on me!" Hermione scowled at her friend, but didn't bother holding back the laugh, mainly as the second part of Andromeda's statement sunk in. "Bellatrix bet I wouldn't fall?"
The fifth year nodded, her attention on the crowded group of students they were walking through. "Oh yeah. She said you were shockingly decent at flying. Outright praise, coming from her. Told me I'd eat my words after when the match ends and you hadn't fallen."
"Don't bet on me," Hermione said, trying to sound stern but even she could tell the humor of the situation leaked into her tone. "I'm surprised she thought I wouldn't fall," she added in a much lower tone.
"She was impressed today, you know. You surprised us all being a decent beater. Who would have thought?"
Hermione was still pondering the thought when they met up with none other than Bellatrix and Narcissa, both girls in a relatively heated argument about- something. Hermione could hardly keep up with what the sisters fought over, and knew they would be fine with one another soon enough. Sure thing, once they noted the arrival of Andromeda, they silenced their most likely petty argument and joined the three of them. Both Bellatrix and Narcissa gave Ted a wide berth, and the fifth year pretended not to notice, not as Andromeda snapped at her sisters to knock it off, but Hermione could tell this was a step in a positive direction, no matter how slight.
It was a relatively quiet walk with the rest of the students, but surprisingly not uncomfortable, and even Bellatrix walked beside Hermione with ease, neither one of them feeling any desire to get into a usual argument or skirmish. In fact, Hermione had not felt the desire to scream at the oldest Black daughter for some time, and had even come to enjoy her company and presence.
They had even entered into an easy and pointless conversation about their courses not long after they started walking, both of them debating the merits of using a particular defensive move over others. Bellatrix took the side of forgoing defense at all and working on the offense whenever possible, which was no shock there, though she was all ears when Hermione shot back her own reasonings for a strong defense.
Neither one noticed they had reached Hogsmeade, too enthralled in talking to one another, and only when Andromeda pulled on Hermione's arm did she realize, and end the debate with Bellatrix, though she did not want to.
Honeydukes was a packed as ever, all of the students excited to be able to replenish their long since depleted stashes. Hermione, Andromeda, and Ted had to squeeze their way between the tightly packed aisles until they reached a corner of exquisite chocolates. Bellatrix and Narcissa had walked in the opposite direction initially, though not five minutes had gone by before the older girl returned to them, complaining about Narcissa talking to another third year and her being bored. Andromeda reached for a pack of candy, before moving on to a sweet section next to the chocolate, Ted following behind.
"I wanted to say thank you for taking so much time to train me," Hermione said once it was just the two of them. She was looking at chocolates she would not be purchasing, just to have something to do as she talked. "I know you did it so Slytherin had a slightly better chance at winning, but still- none of the other teammates offered. So... thank you, Bellatrix."
Bellatrix just gave a shrug, her attention still on the candy before her. "I very well couldn't risk Slytherin's good name being tarnished, now could I?"
"That's true," Hermione agreed, before a smile spread across her face as she turned to face Bellatrix head on. "But Slytherin's good name had nothing to do with you betting I wouldn't fall today."
"I don't know what you're talking about."
"Sure."
"Really, vermin, I have no clue and-"
"Andromeda was not happy at having to owe you money," Hermione said with a shrug similar to Bellatrix's, knowing the movement would annoy her further. And it worked, as she scowled at the action and cursed her sister's name. "It's okay, I won't tell anyone your secret."
"And what secret is that?"
"Isn't it obvious?"
"Potter-"
"Well, that we're friends now, of course."
Andromeda, Narcissa, and Ted returned before Hermione could catch Bellatrix's reply, but based on the crooked upturn of her mouth and the less than annoyed roll of her dark eyes as Andromeda announced they were tired of being jammed pack in this store, and wanted to go somewhere else.
Hermione had to agree. She was feeling a bit claustrophobic at the crowded store, and exploring some other place sounded lovely right now. She voiced that, and the two of decided a trip to Scrivenshaft's could be fun. Bellatrix and Ted trailed behind, the former grumbling about going to a quill store, but following the path to Honeyduke's exist all the same.
Steve and the beater who played as chaser today, a girl named Victoria, were waiting right outside of Honeydukes when Hermione stepped out with her friends. Both of them had smiles on their faces that were not at all reassuring as they watched Hermione walk away from the building and closer to them. Bellatrix was beside her, a bored and somewhat annoyed look on her face as she moved to stand beside her teammates.
"Potter," Steve said, looking from Victoria to Bellatrix then back to Hermione. "You have to come with us."
"Why?"
"We're celebrating," he said simply, before looking to Andromeda, Ted, and Narcissa standing near them. "Hey, Andy. Baby Black. Mind if we borrow your friend?"
Narcissa rolled her eyes at the clearly less than enjoyable nickname, and Hermione couldn't help but notice Steve did not acknowledge Ted at all, but the fifth year student seemingly didn't care as he simply threw his arm around Andromeda's shoulders while the middle Black child replied, "Can't you hold off on your celebration until we're done with her?"
"No can do, Andy, it's her first won game!" Victoria laughed, the sound mellow and sweet. Everything about her was gentle, from the soft curls of her blonde hair to the warm brown of her eyes, until you faced her on the Quidditch pitch. She was nearly as ruthless as Bellatrix when it came to ensuring their team won, and would go to any lengths to do so.
Andromeda scowled at the Quidditch players before she turned to Hermione, her arms crossed. "You should go," she said anyway, nodding to her sister. "You earned whatever stupid celebration they have in mind."
Victoria made a 'come on!' motion with her hand, and Hermione looked between her new teammates and Andromeda and the others. She was slightly curious about what it meant to celebrate, though part of her felt guilty for abandoning her friends like that. But it was Andromeda who shoved her towards the captain of Slytherin with a laugh, and said, "We aren't even gonna miss you."
It was Hermione's turn to roll her eyes, but allowed Steve and Victoria to lead her away from Honeydukes, Bellatrix walking beside the blonde girl and talking quietly.
They kept walking, further through the village until they reached a section of woods that would take them to a part of Black Lake. It was a path Hermione had walked many times before, and her curious just kept spiking at what sort of initiation would take place at Blake Lake. There wasn't too much more time to think on it, as Steve came to a halt not longer after, and Hermione moved to see why.
The three other members that made up the Slytherin Quidditch- Sebastian; the second beater Ryan; and the keeper, a boy whose speed rivaled that of even Harry's at times, Tony- were already sitting down around a magically created fire, the blue of the sparks lighting up their tiny area and giving off a munch needed degree of warmth in the chilled weather.
And beside Sebastian, securely nestled into the sand, was three bottles of firewhiskey.
"Uh-" Hermione balked at the sight of the alcohol, as even though she was technically of age, she had no clue how old anyone else was. Not to mention they'd all have to return to the castle at some point tonight, and it would reflect terribly on the entire team if they were caught drunk and amped up with stupid courage.
"Tradition, Hermione," Steve explained as he plopped down beside Ryan, Victoria following and claiming the empty spot on their captain's left. Two spots were left open in their make shift circle, closest to the water and side by side. Bellatrix sat down first, shifting to sit crossed legged, with her ever present black dress stretched across her legs and her arms in her lap. How she was freezing in that outfit was beyond Hermione.
She did sit down, frowning at the feeling of the cool sand pressing into her pants, and eyed the rest of the group warily. No one had given her any sort of inclination the team had a tradition to celebrate someone's first win, and she had no clue what to expect, especially with firewhiskey now in the mix.
Bellatrix definitely had not given her any heads up during any of their early morning or late night trainings, but she should have expected as much. Knowing the other girl, she would most likely being enjoying watching Hermione go through whatever initiation process Slytherin had for her.
And it obviously involved a decent amount of alcohol. And was starting immediately, as Ryan easily undid the cap on the first bottle and held it up. "To Hermione!" He cheered, the blue fire reflecting off his light eyes and the dark amber liquid of the alcohol. "A shockingly good beater!"
The rest of the team cheered loudly at that, and Hermione flushed at all of the attention being on her, even if it was her being teased, albeit friendly.
She rolled her eyes, and when Ryan tried to hand her the bottle, she frowned. "I don't really drink," she said simply.
"It's a celebration in your honor, Hermione," Victoria said as she sipped from the bottle, right from the glass. "You sure?"
She wasn't, not really. In any other time, she would have said no without hesitation, would have not thought twice about declining the alcohol, but they were celebrating, weren't then?
And for once in Hermione's time at Hogwarts, there was not threat of her and her friends being killed, no professors sneaking in dark wizards or failing to protect the students, no dangerous chess games and no uncles facing execution. She was having fun for once in her life, and though the people now around her would never replace Harry, Ron, or Ginny, they were her friends as well, or close enough to it.
There would be time later to think about Voldemort and Bellatrix's path, and this stupid mission, but now? It wouldn't make a difference in her job if Hermione remained sober or had one sip of whiskey, would it?
It wasn't like her to do this, but maybe it was time to stop being herself, if only just for this one night.
"Actually," she spoke up, and took the bottle from Victoria. She hesitated only a moment before raising the bottle to her lips, and cringing at the burning sensation that overtook her when the alcohol slid down her throat. It was through effort of wills that she didn't gag, and passed the bottle to Sebastian.
That... wasn't so bad. And nothing happened, no professor came out of nowhere to scold them for drinking, no dementors swarmed them to give them a kiss, nothing happened.
Hermione felt her shoulders relax, and when the bottle was offered to her once more, she didn't even think before she grabbed it again.
What felt like only minutes but had to be much longer, judging by the sun's new position much lower in the sky, Ryan announced they had finished off the first bottle, and were halfway through the second.
"It's time for your initiation!" Steve said, his voice much louder than it needed to be, a sure sign he was definitely feeling the effects of the whiskey. None of the others were fairing any better, everyone much more slouched and relaxed than they had started, their voices louder and more boisterous. Even Hermione had drank way more than she thought she would, her stomach warm and her brain hazy as she watched the blue flames flicker in the gentle breeze.
The whiskey had chased away the chill of the night, and she had discarded her scarf and robe, now only in her school issued skirt and blouse. She'd even taken off her socks and shoes, and had her toes buried in the sand.
"What's my initiation?" She partially slurred, finding it somewhat hard to keep her eyes all the way open as her head kept lolling to the side. Definitely too much alcohol, she silently chastised herself. But she was on a high after the win, and had let herself get absorbed into the celebratory atmosphere her teammates had created in her honor. It was nothing like her, in fact she had even scolded Ron for trying to drink before, and even though she technically was of age, she knew it was only due to present company she had left herself drink like this.
Not that she had any complaints right now. She was having more fun than she'd had in a while, and didn't want it to end. Bellatrix was beside her still, using Hermione's robe as a makeshift pillow from where she lay on the cool sand.
She looked absolutely lovely right in that moment, as the dimming sun bounced off her dark and wavy hair, her eyes closed against the light and an empty bottle of whiskey against her side. Her dressed was a bit bunched up from laying down, the hem higher than Hermione had ever seen it and leaving pale, toned thighs on display.
Bellatrix had drank as much as everyone else, and was now much more relaxed than Hermione ever seen before, her tone much less hostile as she enjoyed being surrounded by people she genuinely liked. And she had talked to Hermione more than the others, staying by her side throughout the afternoon as they passed bottle after bottle back and forth, and Hermione was finding it increasingly hard to take her eyes off of the girl.
It was only when Steve's words settled in her brain did she look up, and found Steve, Ryan, and Victoria already standing, Steve reaching for the hem of his shirt.
"Uh-" Hermione couldn't help the small hiccup that came out and made Tony laugh, as she frowned at the scene of the three of them beginning to take their clothes off. Another minute and Sebastian and Tony were forcing themselves to stand, slightly wobbly, and moved to remove their own shirts. "What's... this?"
"Your initiation," Steve said again, now shirtless and letting the item of clothing drop onto the sand as he undid his belt. "We're swimming." He jerked his head to the lake at Hermione's back, and grinned at her. "Everyone's done it their first time. Bellatrix threw a fit when she had, but me and her did it together, isn't that right, B?"
Bellatrix's answer was for her to throw up the peace sign, her pinky not quite bent all the way down, and she let her hand pitifully slam against the sand. Oh, she was drunk indeed, even as she opened her eyes and shoved herself into a sitting position. "Fucking cold," she finally answered, and looked at the lake once more. "I am not getting wet again." Her voice was raspier than ever before, and Hermione was too drunk to process how much she truly enjoyed listening to it.
"I agree," Hermione slushed out, doing one long blink as the sun hit her eyes. She had already been in Blake Lake once more, magically knocked unconscious and tied around mermaids. She knew what was in these waters, and even drunk knew it was not smart to get in again. "I want to be dry."
Victoria laughed and bent down to drag Hermione to stand, and in the process nearly knocked both of them down. Hermione needed water, and food, and sleep, and to go back in time to smack herself for agreeing to drink. "No choice! Strip!"
The four boys were already down to their underwear and walking towards the water's edge to give the girls' some privacy, and Victoria showed she had no qualms about being half naked in front of any of them as she let her dress pool around her ankles, and it was only Hermione reaching out to steady her that kept her from toppling over when she stepped out of the clothing.
"Hurry up, Hermione! You're one of us now! You gotta do it!" With that, Victoria rushed to join the others, the boys already screaming as they started inching into the water.
Hermione couldn't even imagine how cold it had to be this time of year, but-
But she wanted to do it.
It was the alcohol telling her that, she knew it, but she also wanted to do this with the rest of the team, caution and worry thrown to the wind. Her shirt came unbuttoned first, and she let it slip off of her shoulders onto the ground before she undid the buttons of her skirt and pulled the zipper down, the entire time feeling a heavy gaze on her back as she moved.
When she was in nothing but her bra and underwear, and feeling a bit self conscious, her arms wrapped around her stomach, she looked at Bellatrix, finding the girl staring at her with blown pupils.
"Are you coming?" Hermione's throat was dry as she asked, and she tried to tell herself she wasn't disappointed at the shake of Bellatrix's head. "Okay then." She turned to the water, still feeling Bellatrix watching her every movement, and started walking to the edge of the beach.
At the first touch of the chilled water against her bare feet, she couldn't help the loud shriek that escaped her, but with Steve and the rest of the team cheering her own, she let her alcohol hazy mind keep claiming this was fine, she could have this fun for now, that nothing bad would happen.
Her teeth were chattering by the time she reached the rest of her friends, all of them chest deep in the dark water, and Ryan took the opportunity to dunk Steve, who came up spitting salty water a second later and retaliated with a large splash that got them all.
This was... nothing like what she envisioned Slytherins to do. She tried to picture Draco in this scenario, in nothing but his underwear, drunk in Black Lake, and came up short with ideas. But the Slytherins she had gotten to know in this time, Steve and the team, Andromeda, even Rodolphus, for all his vile behavior could be very charming, and not to mention Bellatrix... they were nothing like what she had in mind for any of them.
It was almost impossible to look at the people before her, well past tipsy and loud, splashing one another without a care in the world, and wonder how many of them would one day serve Voldemort? Rodolphus was there already, and Bellatrix was following that path, but Hermione had seen a change in the girl within recent days, a much more pleasant and enjoyable teen than the brooding mess Hermione had first met.
Would it last? She didn't know. What she did know was that Steve was going down for splashing her in the face just down.
That's how it went for the next couple of minutes, until everyone was well past frozen, and Ryan left the water to grab the bottles of firewhiskey. Hermione was too drunk to vocalize how dangerous it would be to drink even more and keep swimming, and even she took more sips in a desperate attempt to warm her shaking body when the bottle was passed to her.
Hermione didn't even notice until she heard Victoria and Ryan yell, but their seventh teammate had finally deigned to join them, scowling the entire time she swaddled into the water until the hit her shoulders, her messy hair pulled into a bun atop her head in a weak attempt to stay dry.
Her eyes were unfocused, but her voice clear and steady enough to say, "Couldn't let you idiots show me up. No splashing." She reached for the bottle in Sebastian's hand, who offered it quickly, and everyone watched her take a long sip, most likely doing the same thing as Hermione and using the alcohol to warm their blood.
If Hermione couldn't picture Draco in the water, it was nothing compared to her trying to picture Bellatrix Black, but here the girl was, in nothing but her black underwear, wholly drunk and more relaxed than ever, in the deep water of Black Lake, and staring only at Hermione.
"I thought you weren't getting wet again?" She couldn't help but tease Bellatrix, letting the alcohol coursing through her system guide her words.
"Like I said, couldn't let you show me up."
"Oh, I'm one of the idiots, then?"
"The biggest idiot, yes." Bellatrix nodded seriously, but the tone of her voice, the way she said the words, had it come from anyone else, it might have sounded flirty.
None of the others paid them any mind. Victoria now on Steve's shoulders while Sebastian held Tony, the two locked in a heated grip to knock the other off. Bellatrix shifted in the water, dragging her pale arm across the top and watching the ripples that formed. Hermione tracked the movements, kicking her legs that just barely touched the bottom of the sand. She needed to move closer to the shore, where she could properly stand, and when she moved to do so, Bellatrix followed.
They kept at that, though instead of moving anymore closer they moved further sideways, away from the loud group of friends trying to drown one another and off on their own. Hermione had no clue what she was doing, and it seemed Bellatrix was equally as lost, blindly following wherever Hermione deemed interesting enough to move towards.
In the end, they settled far enough to where the screeches of their friends no longer caused Hermione to cringe, but close enough to make them out and ensure no mermaids had pulled one of them under.
It was then that Hermione noted the bottle still in Bellatrix's hand when the girl took another sip, and offered it to Hermione afterwards, but she shook her head. She was fuzzy enough as it was now, and her stomach was rolling in a way that was much too uncomfortable. She needed to sober up, needed the cold water to start clearing her mind. Needed to think, needed to act more like herself and not whatever this was.
Bellatrix finished the bottle one her own, only a small amount left anyway, and let it float beside them, careful not to let it sink. Both of them were still barley touching the sand, and Hermione knew Bellatrix had to be kicking harder than she was to remain afloat, and with each kick the two ended up closer than before, until not many inches separated them.
Hermione didn't think there was another time when she was this close to Bellatrix that didn't end in a fight between the two, and certainly not when they were both so scantly dressed.
And yet she couldn't find a single part of her that really cared.
Bellatrix's eyes dipped down, straight to Hermione's mouth, before they slowly, so so slowly, moved back up her face to look into her eyes. And Hermione was ready for a joke, ready for some mocking comment that would be followed by the quirk of one side of Bellatrix's mouth, but nothing of the sort came.
She just said, "Your lips are turning blue, Hermione."
Hermione's entire body was frozen, to the point she swore she could no longer feel her toes, and with each small wave cresting by them, she became colder and colder. Her lip quivered, the movement gaining Bellatrix's attention once more, and this time she stared at Hermione's mouth longer, her own tongue coming out to wet her full lips and-
It was the copious amounts of firewhiskey in her system that had her stomach flipping like that, right?
They had moved a bit away from the rest of the team, far enough that in the rapidly dimming sky it was hard to make out the individual members as anything more than darkened blobs. Every now and then she'd hear a playful scream and a splash, but none of them seemed to either notice or mind that Bellatrix and Hermione were no longer with them.
"I liked playing this morning," Hermione said, because she couldn't help herself, because she needed to say something, because she liked how Bellatrix's eyes followed the movements of her lips. "It was... intense, and nerve-wracking, and... so many other words I can't even think of right now."
"Hermione Potter, finally speechless? It's only taken months to get you to shut up." The words lacked any bite, and if the playful tone Bellatrix used didn't convince her, then the way her dark eyes were unusually bright, or how she gave a real smile for once, sold it.
Hermione stared at Bellatrix, taking in how her hair was soaking wet and pushed away from her face, for once completely contained under the heavy weight of the salt water that no stands escaped. It exposed her face entirely, everything from her dark eyes, her high arching cheek bones, and of course, those too full lips. They looked so soft, and particularly inviting with how some of the water still clung to them. "I rode a dragon once," Hermione admitted, unsure where that thought had come from, but at the way Bellatrix's eyes widened in surprise and intrigue, she continued. "Relatively recently, actually, with my two friends, and-" words got stuck in her throat at the memory, as her brain caught up to her actions and she could recall why they ever had to ride the abused dragon in the first place.
They wouldn't have known about the Horcrux in Gringotts had it not been for Bellatrix, had her uncontrollable screeching about the sword as she tormented and tortured Hermione not given her the idea about the bank. And at the thought of the person before her carving that knife into her skin, at the use of an Unforgivable curse thrown at her battered body, she was prepared to feel the familiar ache of her scar burning her arm.
But nothing came. There was no increased heart rate, no ragged breathing, no pain. And she realized... realized there was not much of the girl standing before her that reminded her of the deranged woman, not anymore. The girl before her, frozen, drunk, and partially naked, no longer showed any much connection to the woman who would come to instill fear into millions. This girl, this Bellatrix right here, with wide eyes and a crooked grin, who stayed in the water with Hermione despite both of them shaking, whose eyes were slightly haze from the whiskey in their veins...
Hermione liked this girl, this Bellatrix. Enjoyed every dark part of her, from her wicked mouth to her unrelenting devotion to her sisters, and everything in between.
"And what?" Bellatrix asked, nothing but pure interest in her tone as she stared at Hermione.
"And-" Hermione wasn't sure where she was going with the story anyway, couldn't remember what point she wanted to make or- or whatever she was doing. She frowned, and considered suggesting they left the water, as if she were too intoxicated to form proper sentences, they were well past being sober enough to safely stay swimming.
Except Bellatrix kept staring at her, her eyes darker than Hermione ever remembered them being. The girl sucked her equally blue bottom lip into her mouth, catching it between straight and white teeth, and Hermione was captivated by the sight.
There was only one thought in Hermione's mind as she kept looking, one thought she could not get out of her head no matter how hard she tried, until it was the only thing she could think of, the only thing she even wanted right in this moment.
Hermione made the first move. They had floated close enough to one another that it took no effort at all for Hermione to jerk her head forward and press her mouth against Bellatrix's. There was no hesitation whatsoever from the dark witch as she responded in kind.
The kiss started soft and easy, nothing at all like what Hermione would have expected coming from Bellatrix Black of all people. After a moment of that, of nothing but their mouths touching, Bellatrix moved closer, wrapping one hand around the back of Hermione's neck while the other cupped her cheek, pulling her closer immediately.
There was not a single second for Hermione to feel embarrassed at the moan that slipped out when she felt Bellatrix's body pressed against her own.
It was nothing like when they had fought on the ground in the Forbidden Forest all those weeks ago.
Then, it had been rage fueling their movements, no time to truly acknowledge the feeling of firm muscles underneath her when they were trying to buck her off and inflict some type of damage to Hermione. That was no longer the case, and Hermione did not stop herself from letting her hand fly out to flatten itself against Bellatrix's toned stomach.
The cold or the constant movement of keeping themselves afloat had her stomach muscles tensed, well defined underneath Hermione's frozen fingers as she traced the outline of the girl's abs. It was Bellatrix's turn to moan as Hermione's fingers trailed downward, following the dip of muscles until rough lace brushed the tips of her fingers at the exact moment Bellatrix's tongue darted out to flick against Hermione's lips.
Hermione's other hand shot out to roughly grab Bellatrix's hip, feeling the protruding bone digging into her finger as she kept her fingers against the lace of the girl's underwear. She moved her hand no further, but Bellatrix rolled her hips against Hermione's hand, the action trapping the appendage between both of their bodies, and Merlin was that feeling indescribable. She didn't want to stop, not as Bellatrix's tongue brushed against her own, or as the girl's hand tangled roughly in her hair and pulled-
"Ah!" Hermione yelled as she jerked back, effectively breaking the two of them a part as she spun wildly around, looking down at the water surrounding them and completely missing how blown Bellatrix's pupils were in that moment as she watch Hermione panic.
"What- what is wrong?" Bellatrix was near breathless, her cheeks red despite the cold water and her lips wet and swollen.
"Something touched me!" Hermione's chest rose and fell quickly, the movement having nothing to do with the feeling of something slick and slimy brushing across her ankle. They really should not have gotten in this water, not when Hermione had been so privy to what lurks in its depth, and now they were drunk and away from the others and-
"You're panicking," Bellatrix said, moving to lightly wrap her hand around Hermione's wrist and get her attention once more. "You need to breathe."
That was the very last thing she could do right now, not when she could still taste Bellatrix on her tongue, mixed with the stinging feel of the firewhiskey burning her throat and stomach, or the sensation of Bellatrix's hands in her hair and jerking her head backwards. Or the fact that something was most definitely way too close to them.
"Do you know what is in these water?"
"Our squid, mermaids, unknown amounts of fish, probably various other things," Bellatrix replied calmly, and then said, just to distract Hermione, "You're a dragon-rider, but a bit of fish swimming by you is too much?"
Hermione glared at the girl, and it worked exactly how Bellatrix intended it to, just as her teasing had worked this morning before the game. But she still insisted they left the dark water, and it was not until they returned to the fire to cast a spell to dry their bodies and put on their clothes, did Hermione let the seriousness of what just happened sink in.
Why did she do that?
When Hermione turned too soon after getting dressed, she caught the moonlight reflecting off the pale white skin of Bellatrix's scarred back, and hated the immense heat that hit her body as her eyes trailed downwards, following the slope of Bellatrix's back to the curve of her ass, now clad in the black dress that was yet to be zipped up.
She moved again to not be caught staring, blindly reaching for the half full bottle of firewhiskey before taking a large swig.
Even its strong and burning taste did nothing to wipe away Bellatrix from her lips and tongue.
There were a precious few moments when Hermione first woke up where she had no recollection of her actions the night before. She even didn't mind the pounding headache she'd need a potion to cure, or the way her stomach rolled uncomfortably with nausea.
The illusion broke pretty quickly when she ran a hand through her stingy and knotted hair, caked in salt water, and felt her comforter brush against her bare legs and stomach, before all the memories of the night before slammed into her like a truck.
Bellatrix had been so soft beneath her fingertips, the way she had kissed her had been downright sinful. And her hips rolling into Hermione's hand like that...
Hermione jumped up from the bed and threw a robe over her mostly naked body before she rushed to the bathroom to wash, well, everything off of her body. There was no one else around, almost all of the beds in her dorm still housing sleeping students, which she was thankful for. Now was not the time to run into anyone, not as she couldn't stop thinking of the beach.
She was so, so cold, and Bellatrix was so, so warm.
Last night was a stupid and drunken mistake, of that she was sure. It would not have happened had firewhiskey not been thrown in the mix, had they not been half naked in that creepy lake. They weren't even... weren't even attracted to one another.
Sure, Bellatrix was gorgeous, the prettiest girl Hermione had ever seen, and she had muscles to die for, ones Hermione quite enjoyed appreciating last night, but that was nothing. All because of the alcohol.
The water was the hottest setting her skin could stand as she sunk into the deep bath, hissing at the near burning sensation, before she sucked in a breath and dunked her filthy head into the suds. Only when her lungs begged for oxygen did she break the surface again, sucking in needed air. She stayed in that position until the water began to cool, until her toes and fingers pruned, and once she was cleaned and her head less fuzzy, did she leave the comforting embrace of the bathroom and got dressed.
The common room was mostly empty, most of its students wanting to sleep in on a Sunday morning, and that unfortunately gave Hermione the full view of Bellatrix and Rodolphus sitting together on one of the lush couches by the fire.
Hermione had forced herself to ignore Rodolphus' presence until she figured out what to do about his place within the Death Eaters. She had told no one about Rabastan and him attacking them, and had distanced herself from the older boy more than she already had. Not that it had been hard, as Rodolphus had not shown much interest in her anymore since the attack, but Hermione had made an effort to make sure she was not alone in a room with Rodolphus, or Andromeda for that matter.
The younger girl had never caught Rabastan's face that night, would have never put the easily found connection together, but still she did not question Hermione's newfound protectiveness over her when it came to Rodolphus, and especially Rabastan, who was not heavily involved in much of anything, and Hermione thankfully only saw him in passing at meal times.
But here Rodolphus was, arm thrown around the back of Bellatrix's head on the couch, both of them staring down at a book in his lap. They hadn't noticed Hermione's arrival yet, and for that she was thankful.
Bellatrix was to marry him one day, how did that thought not cross Hermione's mind last night? It was just one more thing to blame on the alcohol, she told herself as she remained watching the two interact. She had never been able to figure out if they were actually dating right now, or just friends. Rodolphus was physical with Bellatrix in the sense that he always had a hand on her when they were near one another, but Hermione had never witnessed them kiss, and Bellatrix had certainly never brought Rodolphus up in conversation with Hermione, though relationships had never been brought up.
She'd have to ask Andromeda then, if only just to know where Rodolphus fell into this increasingly complicated mission. He was a Death Eater already, and Hermione needed to know if Bellatrix's marriage to him was arranged, or if she held genuine feelings for the boy. Hermione wished it was the former, as it would make her job infinitely less complicated.
"Why are you staring at them, weirdo?"
"Andromeda!" Hermione growled when the girl had popped up out of nowhere, dressed in just the school's skirt and button down, no robe or tie to be seen. "Don't do that!"
"I called your name. You didn't answer me. What's up?" Andromeda frowned as she stared at Hermione, and even though, rationally, Hermione knew there was no way Bellatrix had told her little sister about last night, she still started to worry about what if Andromeda knew? "If you're done stalking them, come get breakfast with me."
No, there was no way she knew. No way at all. Bellatrix was not the kind of person to go shouting about kissing someone, especially when that someone was a person who had only just recently moved from 'blood-traitor- territory to 'I deal with your presence' territory.
"Seriously, what is wrong with you? You're all pale." She stopped talking for a moment, before a wide grin spread across her face. "You're hungover! I fucking told Ted you were drinking with them last night, and he bet me you wouldn't! Oh, he owes me ten knuts. Fucking yes."
Definitely didn't know. Luckily for Hermione, the two of them delved into an argument about betting on Hermione again that took up nearly the entire walk to the hospital wing for a headache potion, and Bellatrix and the idiotic kiss was placed on the back burner as she told Andromeda about the Slytherin initiation.
Both of them were laughing loudly after Madam Pomfrey's stern warning about 'headaches', and Hermione couldn't find it in herself at that moment to feel ashamed like she would have before. Once they got closer to the Great Hall, they stopped walking at the sight of Daniel heading directly towards them, waving a hand in greeting.
"Morning, Hermione, Andromeda," Daniel said much too energetically as he stopped before both of them, a nice smile on his handsome face. He was dressed in the school robes, looking much more put together than Hermione felt right in that moment, and he held a small box wrapped in white paper. "Andromeda, do you mind if I steal Hermione for a minute?"
The fifth year looked at Daniel for a long moment before winking at Hermione and walking the rest of the way to the Great Hall. It was clear he had been waiting for her to walk this way, the conversation one that apparently could not wait for later, after Hermione had food to wash the still there taste of Bellatrix away and calm her turning stomach. The potion had helped her headache, but had not worked nearly as well on her stomach, and each step was an effort not to vomit.
"Hi, Daniel," Hermione forced herself to smile at the boy. He had no reason to suffer through her bad attitude when he was no involved at all.
"Uh, hi, morning- I said that already, uh-" he rambled, his bottom lip sucked nervously between his teeth before he released a nervous laugh, and Hermione couldn't help but smile at the scene. "Let me try again."
"Take your time," she teased, tucking her hands into the pockets of her robes for warmth. "What's in the box?"
He looked down at the package quickly, as if he had completely forgotten he was even holding it, and then quickly thrust it out to her. "It's for you, actually," he said, now much calmer and slower. "I picked them up at Honeydukes yesterday. I have no clue if you like them, but uh, I figured I couldn't go wrong with chocolates?
She took the box with a soft 'thank you', and tucked it close to her body. The smile on her face couldn't be helped as she beamed up at him. "That's very sweet, thank you very much, Daniel."
They started walking then, Daniel launching into a story about his own Brownie and partner, another Gryffindor boy, and apparently how their's was much less cooperative when it came to feeding, and had even bitten his partner's finger twice. Hermione began describing Fatty, and how much she was enjoying this assignment. She had taken rigorous notes by then, about all things regarding the creature, even the most smallest, and was looking forward to starting the essay within the next couple of days.
When Daniel stopped walking, and turned to face Hermione head on, she stopped talking and stared up at him curiously.
"So, uh," Daniel laughed, the tone slightly awkward and uncomfortable, as he scratched the back of his head. "Uh, I was thinking, you know, uh, maybe it would be fun if we... went out?" His face was as red as Hermione had ever seen it, the coloring moving down to his neck as well. He couldn't quite meet Hermione's eye as he asked.
"Daniel-" Hermione cut herself off, unsure where she was going with it. She should say no, when she could still feel the ghost of Bellatrix's half naked body on her own, could still hear the breathy moan Bellatrix made.
But it was the alcohol that had put them in that position in the first place, wasn't it? It never would have happened without all the firewhiskey, and as Hermione was adamant she would not be drinking again, there was no reason to think they would ever kiss, or even so much as discuss the kiss, again.
Hermione didn't even like Bellatrix like that. Sure, the girl was the most gorgeous person she had ever seen, and probably the only person to ever truly rival Hermione when it came to academic ability. But she was so unbelievably cocky about everything, so full of herself, so undeniably self assured, and that was not attractive. It was not. Not at all.
She refused to think about the fact that none of the other people she had kissed ever made her feel anything close to what Bellatrix caused last night.
Nothing would ever come of the two of them anyway, and not only because Hermione definitely did not like Bellatrix, but because Rodolphus was in the picture.
And Daniel? How did he fit into this? He was sweet, and had been nothing but welcoming to Hermione ever since he arrived. She hadn't considered him as anything more than a friend, but maybe something would happen? Dating had not been a part of her mission goals in the slightest, but then again neither had kissing Bellatrix. Besides, dating Daniel wouldn't distract her from her goals.
"That sounds nice," she finally said, after she had convinced herself that nothing bad would come from going on a date with Daniel, whereas kissing Bellatrix could have brought so many bad things down upon them. "What did you have in mind?"
Daniel's relieved smile solidified Hermione's decision that this was the smart decision, that no matter that her heart didn't increase in pace like it did when Bellatrix smiled like that, this is what she should be doing. He was nice, and she's always had fun when the two of them were together.
As they walked down the hall, Daniel describing various ideas he had thought of, Hermione forced her mind to stop thinking of Bellatrix and last night.
After all, it was nothing but a drunken mistake.