LIGHTNOVELWORLD Chapter 11: Chapter 11
Bellatrix put the finishing touches on Harry's 'costume' for his meeting at Gringotts. He had allowed her to dress him so that he would put on a good face at the meeting. She had chosen a pure black cloak fastened with a silver phoenix to go over his blue and silver robes For effect, she draped a silver stole over his shoulders. A hood had been a necessity because Gringotts was a public location.
"Possibly as soon as next week," she explained to him, "you will have a tight grip on their economy. The alliance with Gringotts will of course contribute heavily- but you will also control the Daily Prophet and significant industries."
Harry nodded numbly. He had not expected to be going to Diagon Alley this soon. It was rather inconvenient to have such short notice, but he had gone to bed before Bellatrix had came home the night before. She had decided not to wake him up. He was extremely glad for her efforts on his behalf though. "How do we get there?" he asked.
"Apparate." Bellatrix answered. "But before you do that, we need to put a shadow charm on your hood there. It ensures that you aren't recognized by those who don't already know you, and makes you more enigmatic, which is good for now." She quickly performed the necessary charm and slipped her cloak, which still had its shadow charm intact, on.
They both pulled out their wands simultaneously and Apparated, appearing in a side street especially designated for those choosing to Apparate into Diagon Alley. Gringotts was quickly entered where they found a contingent of goblin guards waiting to escort them to the Head of Gringotts.
Harry and Bellatrix soon found themselves in a very large office with three very important looking goblins. The guards, sensing the discomfort of the humans, had elected to remain outside once it was established that they weren't there to harm anybody.
The goblin that appeared to be the youngest spoke. "Lord Polairix, Lady Polairix, may I present Lord Gold, the Head of Gringotts." Harry and Lord Gold exchanged ceremonious nods, both paying each other respect without demeaning themselves.
Lord Gold took the initiative to speak next and gestured to the goblin on his right, and then the one who had spoken first. "This is Lord Silver and Lord Bronze. Please be seated." Everyone sat down.
"Your wife said that you were interested in initiating an alliance with us, Polairix. What exactly did you have in mind?" Gold asked diplomatically.
Fortunately for Harry, Bellatrix had coached him as to what he should try to bargain for. Reggins had also had a lot to contribute to that conversation. Between his wife and secretary, a set of goals had been established.
Harry began with the first one. "Although a Goblin Rebellion has not occurred for some time, I would be much obliged if our access to the bank remained secure should such an event occur. In return, I am willing to commit to being on your side during such a rebellion and doing everything in my power to help you.
"Let it be so." Lord Gold intoned and then took a bite at the proverbial apple. "The goblins wish to have the right to ask for asylum under your domain at any time. In return, Gringotts will gladly shelter and protect any agent of the House of Polairix at any time."
Catching onto how to negotiate with goblins, Harry then responded. "Let it be so."
This formal bargaining continued until they were soon nitpicking over tiny details that were mostly insignificant, but were still necessary for the alliance to be complete. As soon as Harry and Lord Gold formally ended the session, a parchment with the whole agreement appeared on the table before them. Quills and ink soon joined and the alliance was signed.
Lord Gold shook Harry's hand. "A pleasure, Lord Polairix. Gringotts will leave it to you to decide when this shall become public knowledge."
"We'll have to see how events come to pass." Harry said vaguely, unsure himself as to when he would reveal his identity and new connections.
The Head of Gringotts nodded understandingly. "Have a nice day."
Harry nodded and he and Bellatrix soon found themselves walking hand-in-hand down one of the banks' hall toward the main entrance. They could then Apparate from the street outside. Several of the goblins they passed gave very respectful nods to the cloaked and hooded couple.
"You did marvelously." Bellatrix breathed proudly to Harry. "You're a natural at diplomacy. I doubt that anyone else could have gotten so much out of them."
"Only because you helped me beforehand." Harry said, squeezing her hand lightly.
She shook her head in disagreement. "You have a natural way of getting along with non-humans. I could tell that those goblins were very impressed with your manners. That skill will come in handy with the Ice People. They're not exactly human and they are rather conscious of it."
"Really?" Harry asked, curious about the Ice People. He was about to ask more when he was interrupted by a goblin who had apparently been doing everything in his power to catch them before they left the bank.
"Lord Polairix," panted the goblin, "some business of a personal nature has arisen. Could you come with me for a few moments."
"Of course." Harry answered, in a slightly confused voice.
The goblin led he and Bellatrix to a nearby office. When they entered, much to Harry and Bellatrix's surprise, they found a very dejected looking Narcissa Malfoy slumped in one of the chairs. From the look of her face, she had been in some sort of fight.
Bellatrix's grip on Harry's tightened as she laid eyes on her sister. Harry wasn't sure how to interpret that. Undoubtedly, she was surprised. But what did she think of her sister? They both sat down at the goblin's invitation next to Narcissa who seemed to be trying to ascertain Harry and Bellatrix's identity.
"I don't know if you're aware, sir," the goblin began nervously, "but you are the Head of House Black due to the circumstances of last June."
Harry nodded slowly. He wasn't quite sure what that had to do with Narcissa Malfoy though. He knew that she had formerly been a Black, but she was married now. Out of the corner of his eye, he noticed Bellatrix's head slump. She was the reason he was the Head of House Black after all. He gave her hand a comforting squeeze.
The goblin elected to continue on. "Your position lays several responsibilities at your feet, one of which comes into play today."
"I see." Harry said as he glanced at Narcissa and then back to the goblin. "Which one is that?"
"The pre-nuptial agreement between Lucius Malfoy and his wife, Narcissa, dictate that the only way she can get out of the marriage is if the Head of House Black or the Head of House Malfoy has the marriage contact canceled. If House Black cancels the contract, Narcissa loses her emancipation and becomes a ward of you. She wants out of the marriage due to the fact that her husband has become… rather abusive." The goblin explained.
Harry looked at Narcissa thoughtfully. "I'm not sure that I understand what you mean by 'ward.'"
"In essence, she becomes your daughter. You manage her affairs, see that she is taught what she needs to know, and anything else you see fit to do for a period of at least three years. Her emancipation is returned at your discretion after that period of time."
Harry looked at Bellatrix who still had her head bowed. What did she think of this whole thing? It was her sister, she would of course have some sort of opinion. Finally, he responded. "Is there a place where my wife and I could discuss this?"
"Of course." The goblin gestured to a room just off his office. "Be my guest."
"Milady?" Harry asked, not wanting to reveal her identity. He stood up and she followed him into the small room and shut the door. Harry lowered his hood so that they could have a face to face discussion. After a moment she lowered hers as well. "What do you think?"
Bellatrix shrugged indifferently, not really meeting his eyes. "You're the Head of House Black, not me."
"You're my wife. She is your sister."
She crossed her arms indifferently and looked the other way. "It's not my decision, and I don't really care. Lucius probably beat the snot out of her. She isn't doing this because she 'saw the light.' She doesn't want to deal with Lucius. At best, she will be like an extremely difficult teenage daughter."
"We can give her a chance to 'see the light.'" Harry replied. No response. He then sighed deeply. "I think that we should probably give her a chance. It's an opportunity we shouldn't pass up. We should also give her the chance to know who we are. Lucius might be a better alternative than I am. Let's get back." They returned their hoods to their place.
They returned and sat down. Narcissa looked rather apprehensive now. Harry addressed the goblin. "We've decided to cancel the marriage contract, providing that she still wants escape the marriage after we reveal something to her. Would you be so kind as to give the three of us a moment of privacy?"
The goblin bowed and left the room. Harry stood up, followed by Bellatrix, and they both lowered their hoods. Narcissa's face whitened when she saw Harry Potter and her supposedly dead sister standing before her. "If you do this, you're stuck with us." Harry said.
"I'm getting out of Lucius's life no matter what." Narcissa said in a desperate voice that was tinged with disdain. She couldn't believe that she was in this situation. "He's been physically abusing me lately. I haven't always agreed with some of his darker activities." She unconsciously glanced at Bellatrix who had probably been punished at the hands of Lucius as well. Bellatrix quickly looked away.
Harry and Bellatrix pulled their hoods up just as the goblin returned. "Have the three of you agreed on a specific action?"
"Yes, cancel the contract. We'll take Narcissa on as our ward." Harry said. The goblin promptly began to draw up some documents. "What of her son? How will this affect him?" Harry asked.
The goblin looked up from the divorce papers he was working on. "Guardianship automatically reverts to the father in this case. If Lucius Malfoy becomes incapacitated, his will will dictate who guardianship goes to. You can fight for custody if it isn't to a family member."
A moment later, the goblin had Harry sign the papers and then formally announced that the marriage was now officially dissolved. He then turned his attention to Narcissa. "You will now need to surrender your wand to Lord Polairix. I'm quite sure that he'll give it back at some point in time." She did so grudgingly. Harry pocketed it.
"I believe that is all." the goblin said as they all stood up.
Harry nodded and changed his plans for how to return to Nair'icaix. He found a glove in his cloak pocket and made a simple Portkey from it. He had not mastered that skill to perfection yet. "Everyone grab hold."
A short jerk later, they were standing in the main hall of Harry's fortress. He looked from Bellatrix to Narcissa somewhat nervously. The two sisters stood deliberately avoiding each other's gaze all while darting glances toward the other.
After a long and uncomfortable moment, Bellatrix broke the silence. "Mrs. Higgin!" she barked.
The housekeeper that had been hired with the other employees promptly made her way into the main entrance hall. She detected the bad attitudes and immediately singled out the person who wasn't likely to bite her head off. "Yes, my lord?"
"Um… This is Narcissa M . .Black." Harry explained. "She's now my ward. Please find her a room and have lunch served to her. After that, make sure she remains in that room until I or my wife have a discussion with her. Once that's over, we'll see where to go next."
Mrs. Higgin nodded and imperiously led Narcissa away as Harry followed a very sulky Bellatrix up to their bedroom. She shoved the door open and entered with Harry on her heels before she slammed it shut. He stood and used magic to remove his cloak as she stalked over to her closet and began to change clothes.
Silence reigned until Harry realized that it was up to him to figure out what was wrong. This was not going to be one of his favorite 'husbandly duties.' "What's got you so angry?" he inquired with a placating voice.
Bellatrix's hands froze just as they were about to remove her robe. She took her time to answer. When she did, it was in a curt tone. "It's my fault he's dead. My fault that you're the head of House Black."
"Oh." Harry said. He would normally use Legillimency, but he felt that it would be an intrusion upon his wife's privacy- so, he attempted to resist the urge. However, her emotions were so strong that he could feel the overpowering wave of guilt coming from her. For some reason, the guilt was joined by jealously as well.
Apparently she had expected more than an 'oh' from him and after giving him a short period to respond continued on loud and awkwardly. "Well? Is that all you have to say? I killed him!"
"But you're my wife. I love you." Harry said, at a loss for words, not quite sure what could be said to calm her down and assure her of his good feelings for her. She may have done the deed, but it was he that had led Sirius to the Department of Mysteries. Not only that, a stunner had been used, not the Killing Curse. Besides, he had realized that there was no point in living in the past. It saved one a lot of anger and misery to look forward.
"I'm your wife only because of a stupid accident." Bellatrix screamed. "If you had been in a position to choose, would you have married your godfather's murderer? If someone had killed a person I loved, I would despise them for as long as I lived! I would torture them and then kill them."
Harry shrugged. He did have to admit that they were in some unusual circumstances. "It's in the past though, isn't it? If we love each other, it doesn't matter. I love you, don't you love me?" He whispered.
Bellatrix then began to cry uncontrollably. "Yes, I love you with all my heart. I would die a thousand times for you. It's the least you deserve from me. You're a good person with kindness that comes naturally to nearly everyone you meet. I don't deserve you."
The guilt didn't seem to be quite as violent as it had been before, but jealously was coming off in waves now. She was jealous of Narcissa for some reason. "What does your sister have to do with this?" Harry asked.
"She never was a Death Eater." Bellatrix mumbled despondently. "She never killed a soul in her life. Pride is a major failing of her character, but at least she isn't evil. Her husband beat her." Bellatrix's voice then gained some strength. "I've killed and tortured innocents! I deserve to be hit, punched, and slapped repeatedly. Not her. It isn't fair." She then burst into a fresh fit of tears.
Harry finally gave into the temptation to use Legillimency. The most obvious thing that popped up was her extreme quilt for Sirius's death. She also felt guilty for having a better husband than Narcissa formerly had possessed because she felt that her sister was a better person. Despite this, she fiercely regarded Harry's as hers and hated herself for that. She thought that she was being selfish. Her greatest fear and jealously seemed to be that Harry might like Narcissa better.
He walked over to her and took her head in his hands and forced her to look at him. "The fact that you feel guilty shows that you aren't evil. You love me and that's the greatest thing anybody could give me. Your crimes are in the past and I don't hold them against you." he said forcefully. "I love you and you alone. You're the queen of my heart." He then kissed her lightly on the lips and then pulled back to see how she would react.
Bellatrix's violet eyes looked back at his green ones blankly. The only difference in her that Harry could discern was that the jealously had been wiped away and that her guilt had drastically faded. A trace that would likely never go away remained. He didn't think that it would overpower her though.
Abruptly, she raised her arms and shoved Harry forcefully onto their bed. Before he knew what was happening, she was on top of him and kissing him passionately as her hands clutched him as tightly as possible.