The Dark Lord's Pet Princess

10. A New Mission

Larissa wasn't too happy about keeping Andromeda's secret from everyone, but she knew that the alternative was worse, as she didn't want her cousin to get thrown out of the family.
For the rest of the school year she saw Andromeda and Ted looking at each other during meal times, while Narcissa was oblivious to it all.
Larissa was actually happy for once when she returned home for the summer holidays, as it meant she didn't have to lie to Narcissa any more, or worry about what Andromeda was up to with Ted.
But it didn't take long for her to be reminded how much she hated living at Grimmauld Place with her parents. And very soon her body was covered in scars again.

After a few weeks back at home, Larissa was given a respite from her parents beatings, for Bellatrix's wedding had arrived.
She had been chosen to be a bridesmaid along with Narcissa, while Andromeda was to be the maid of honor.
The girls all wore identical black dresses, and their family tiaras on their heads.
Bellatrix had been given a particularly expensive crown, which was a family heirloom, to wear for the occasion, not that it made the day any more bearable for her.

"I guess this is my last day living inside the Black manor" said Bellatrix sadly.
The girls were all getting ready in Bellatrix's room, preparing for the wedding which was going to take place in one of the grand halls in the manor.
Larissa helped her cousin into her white wedding dress, and as she did she noticed a strange tattoo on her wrist that hadn't been there before.
"What's that?" Asked Larissa.
Bellatrix said nothing, and pulled down the sleeves of her dress, so that the tattoo couldn't be seen.

"Does your father know that you've got a tattoo?" Questioned Larissa.
"Yes, my parents are aware that I have it, and they know what it represents" answered Bellatrix.
"What's that supposed to mean?" Frowned Larissa.
"Never you mind" mumbled Bellatrix.
"Bella, are you sure you want to go through with this? It's not to late for us to run away together and join a circus" admitted Andromeda.

Bellatrix forced a smile, "It's too late to back out now. Besides, it could be worse. There are far worse men I could be marrying. Rodolphus is rather weak, so I will be able to control him easily. I'm not going to let someone like him tell me what to do".
"I'm glad to hear that you've still got some fight left inside you" admitted Larissa.
"I'm never going to lose my fight, trust me. Father may think he's won, because he has successfully forced me into marriage. But he doesn't realise that he has not broken me. I am still just as strong as I was before" announced Bellatrix.
"I'm glad" replied Larissa.

"Personally I'm not a fan of the whole big white wedding thing. I think it's much more romantic to run off and elope" revealed Andromeda.
Narcissa and Bellatrix laughed, but Larissa didn't, for she knew that Andromeda might not be joking.
"Where would you even go?" Asked Bellatrix.
"I don't know. Somewhere small and quiet, away from all this drama. Maybe a nice cottage somewhere" answered Andromeda.
"I can't see you settling down in a cottage"
"Well, we never know where the future is going to take us"
"I suppose that's true".

Bellatrix looked at herself in the full length mirror and sighed.
"I guess this is it" she mumbled.
The girls all made their way over to her, and held her tight.
"You're going to be O.K" whispered Larissa.
"I know. In fact, I'm looking forward to moving out and getting away from my parents" admitted Bellatrix.
"You will come back and visit us though, won't you?" Asked Narcissa.
"Of course Cissy" promised Bellatrix.

"I don't want you moving on and forgetting about us" said Andromeda.
"I will never forget about you three, you're my family. And I will try and visit as often as I can, but I'm going to be very busy in the future" revealed Bellatrix.
"Why? Is the auror department assigning you lots more jobs?" Questioned Larissa.
"Not exactly, no. I have found myself another job. A much more important job, and it's one that I'm going to be dedicating a lot of my time to" answered Bellatrix.
"What kind of job?"
"I can't say. But maybe once you've left Hogwarts I can introduce you to my new employer. I have a feeling that you are going to want to work for him as well"
"I'd like that"
"I thought you would. Which is why I will put in a good word for you"
"Thanks".

Bellatrix looked over her shoulder at the clock on the wall, as a tear dripped down her face.
"It's time" she said, as she quickly wiped away the tear and threw the veil over her face.
The girls all picked up the bouquets which were full of red and black roses.
They then followed Bellatrix out of the room and headed downstairs towards the wedding.
Larissa couldn't help but fear that her own fate was going to be the same as Bellatrix's, if she didn't do something drastic soon.