black coffee | remus lupin [2]

99. plan b

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CLAUDIA LOOKED UP AT HIM. She didn't want to believe it - it couldn't possibly be because of him. It just couldn't be.

But when she looked into the gray and green eyes of the person in front of her, all she saw was a certain darkness that could only belong to a liar. To a traitor.

She knew, just by a simple look, that he had betrayed them. She didn't need it to be confirmed for her, but she was certain that Regulus, who had only been looking worriedly at Claudia during the mere minute they had been in their enemies' arms, needed it said for him to believe it.

Bellatrix laughed once more. Loudly and annoyingly, as though her only plan was to make Claudia and Regulus be even more uncomfortable due to hearing her voice.

"Well, if it isn't our pretty little Maple Mistake and her precious husband!" Bellatrix exclaimed. "How lovely to see you."

"Wouldn't say the same to you," Claudia muttered under her breath. "Let us go!"

"Shut up, you filthy halfblood!" Bellatrix yelled. That was the real her coming out - the insane woman who Claudia had avoided since her birth. "Drop your wands! Drop them!"

Claudia and Regulus shared a look. Claudia nodded, and so Regulus put his wand down onto the ground, rather reluctantly so, as Claudia grabbed the wand that was in her shoe and tossed it down onto the ground. One of the Death Eaters, the woman who wasn't occupied with holding onto anyone, grabbed them.

Claudia turned her head around a little, and realised that the person holding onto her was her own stepbrother. Nolan looked back at her with cold eyes, making her turn to look at Bellatrix, who began speaking again.

"You listen, I talk. Doesn't that sound good?"

The dark haired woman stepped in front of the girl, and stared madly into her eyes with only a few centimetres left between them.

"Or maybe I should leave the talking to your brother," she said with a mean grin, stepping aside and looking at Nicolas, who was now the person everyone was watching.

An uncomfortable silence came upon all of them. Bellatrix stood and grinned, her eyes flickering between Claudia and Nicolas. Nolan was still just staring straight ahead with a certain void inside of him.

Claudia could finally properly take in her surroundings. Around her was the same group of Death Eaters that she had seen in the woods a while back. Nolan, Bellatrix and the three others that she didn't recognise. Two of them were holding onto Regulus and the remaining woman was standing next to them with a smile of success on her face, twirling Regulus' wand between her fingers.

"Go on, Nicolas," said Bellatrix. "Talk."

"What is there to say?" Claudia interrupted, causing the boy to look at her with a certain hollowness. "You betrayed us."