Author's Notes: Chapter edited and corrected by Scott Fellman.
Black Manor was imposing, there was no doubt about it… and I didn't know it existed until 5 minutes ago.
For some reason, I thought the entire family lived at Grimmauld Place, which, after thinking about it for a few seconds, was a completely stupid idea. No. 12 was now in the hands of Orion and Walburga, and at the moment, only Regulus, since Sirius had been living with the Potters since last year.
Even though Bellatrix and Narcissa lived somewhere else, this mansion was for Lord Black, and it was only filled during holidays or some family gathering, from what Bellatrix was telling me.
I approached the entrance of the mansion, which was guarded by massive gates. I considered knocking before remembering Bellatrix's request, but I swallowed a copper mind to activate my copper cloud. For some reason, Bellatrix had wanted me to get to the door of the mansion without knocking.
I did not doubt that it was some kind of display of power or skill. As soon as I took a step, I felt the terrifying defenses that were around the mansion. Luckily, my copper cloud made me go unnoticed; even so, I walked carefully along the path, flew over the bars, and landed on the other side.
Once I reached the door of the building, I knocked hard. I was halfway through the third knock when a house elf appeared next to me.
"Who dares disturb the Black family! Identify yourself, intruder!" The house elf growled.
"I am Serena Snape, guest of Bellatrix," I said simply as I handed him the letter of introduction, and that stopped the elf. He then quickly grabbed the card. The sullen-faced elf nodded, then snapped his fingers, and the door to the mansion opened.
"Follow Kreacher, half-blood, he'll take you to Miss Belle." So, that elf was Kreacher. He looked a lot healthier and younger than in the movies. I shrugged and followed the elf through the mansion.
The mansion was stupidly opulent, not to the extent that everything was made of gold. Still, you could tell the quality of every piece of furniture at a glance, and they definitely cost a small fortune.
"Here we are." Kreacher growled as he opened the doors. "Kreacher brought Miss Half-Blood, Miss Bella's guest." Kreacher announced as he entered.
"Sera!" Narcissa was obviously the first to exclaim my name as she approached.
"Stop, Narcissa." I looked at the man who had just spoken, who had his wand in his hand. "Since you have entered the house, the wards are still on." The man demanded. The other people in the room went on guard. I sighed. I really shouldn't have listened to Bellatrix.
"I told her to come in; I knew she could get through the wards without a problem." Bellatrix interrupted as she walked up to me, grabbing my wrist and dragging me in front of the man with the wand. "Grandfather, I present to you Serena Eileen Snape, daughter of the Prince family. Serena, I present to you Lord Black, Arcturus Black." Bellatrix introduced Arcturus, who was frowning, but put his wand away before looking at me. I suppressed the shudder as I saw him staring at me; it almost seemed like he was looking into my soul. He certainly was judging me on so many levels.
"Lord Black, it is a pleasure to meet you. Excuse the inconvenience with the wards, Bellatrix must have been confused with your directions." I glared for a split second at Bellatrix, who was ignoring me, before turning and smiling slightly at Arcturus. Really, I hated all this pompous formality. I had Severus' memories, so I knew how to act, how to behave, and what to say. So it really wasn't a problem, but that didn't make me hate it any less.
"Miss Snape, a pleasure to do so, and don't worry, I know my niece." Bellatrix was still looking away, but she wore a mocking smile. Arcturus sighed. "Though I must ask, how did you get past the wards?" His gaze was serious now, and he had no doubt that she could bypass his wards without alerting any of them; it would be a massive security breach.
"Oh, it was something I designed; it makes me invisible to any magical detection. Which is something most wards use." I explained vaguely, and Arcturus seemed impressed. "Although I would appreciate it, Lord Black, if you could include me in the wards. I would prefer not to keep my charm on for the entire visit." I smiled tightly at him. Arcturus nodded and took out his wand. After a few seconds, he nodded.
"Indeed, I'm impressed. I cast some detection spells, and even in front of me, I couldn't detect you, impressive young lady." Ah, I understand Bellatrix's game now, I nodded slightly.
"Thank you for the praise, Lord Black, but I still have much to learn." I said modestly before reaching into my pocket and pulling out a small wooden box. "A gift, it would be rude of me to come empty-handed." I presented the box to Arcturus, who took it curiously and opened it.
"A... fang and a flask?" Arcturus asked with a frown as he inspected the items. It was a long fang and a small flask, no more than 60ml. "My granddaughter mentioned that you were the youngest to become a potion master. Is this some kind of potion?" he asked curiously,.I shook my head.
"While the latter is partially true, the bottle is not a potion; it is a poison." I corrected simply, Arcturus looked at me, "It is basilisk venom and one of its fangs," I explained. Arcturus stopped momentarily, and I heard several gasps around me belonging to the rest of the Black family.
"That… is this true?" He asked slowly, narrowing his eyes, and I nodded.
"I was lucky enough to come across a freshly killed basilisk corpse that I was able to harvest successfully. Bellatrix and Narcissa both saw the remains of the basilisk; they can attest to that. Bella even has one of its fangs." Arcturus looked questioningly at Bellatrix, who nodded. Arcturus turned his gaze back to me, giving me a more appreciative look. Basilisk venom was extremely expensive; even a small bottle, like the one I had just given him, was worth many galleons.
"I appreciate this gift." He nodded as he closed the box again. "Kreacher, leave this in my office." He handed the box to Kreacher, and Kreacher nodded and disappeared with it. "Bellatrix, introduce her to the rest of the family." Arcturus nodded in the direction of the family. Bellatrix let out a sigh she seemed to have been holding in, and without hesitation, she linked her arm through mine.
"Well done, first test passed," Bellatrix muttered to herself.
"It would have been nice to know what was waiting for me," I growled lightly. She rolled her eyes.
"I knew you could pass." Bellatrix slapped my hand lightly. Somehow, she managed to make it sound honest and yet condescending, which was annoying. I pinched her hip, causing her to glare at me.
"Sera!" Narcissa exclaimed again, but this time, there was no one to stop her, so she hugged me tightly.
"Cissy, we saw each other just now." It was last night at the apartment, but Narcissa ignored me and wrapped her other arm around me and began dragging me away.
It was a rather long round of greetings. First, we started with Bellatrix and Narcissa's parents, Cygnus and Druella, then continued with their grandparents, Pollux and Irma, and their great-aunt Cassiopeia.
Arcturus was actually Bellatrix's second great-uncle. He was accompanied by his wife, Melania. Then, we met his daughter, Lucretia, and her husband, Ignotus. They were followed by Orion and Walburga, Sirius's parents, whom Regulus accompanied.
It was sad, really. There were more than a dozen people present from the Black family, and in just three decades, only Narcissa and Andromeda would remain. This was one of the things that had hit the pair of sisters the hardest, even Lucius, about the Harry Potter movies.
"So Miss Snape, my daughters, Bellatrix and Narcissa, speak very highly of you." Cygnus said between bites of his food, the Black family had headed towards the dining hall for dinner. I was sitting between Bellatrix and Narcissa. "We were shown the charms, curses, potions, and artifacts you created. I have to admit, Narcissa's needles and scissors are especially impressive, able to pierce and cut through any material completely ignoring its hardness, amazing." I blinked slightly and looked at Narcissa. She gave me an apologetic smile. I sighed before smiling softly at Cygnus.
"It wasn't a problem; in fact, I appreciated the challenge it was to create them. Narcissa is a very good friend. I wanted to make something special for her. I hope she enjoys them," I said honestly. Narcissa smiled widely at me. She was about to answer when she was interrupted by Walburga's click of her tongue.
"Sewing? Ridiculous, what a waste of time and effort, once you marry Malfoy, maybe you'll forget about those ideas." Walburga growled. I could feel more than one person rolling their eyes without seeing it.
"Lucius fully supports my hobby, Aunt Walburga," Narcissa replied. Walburga wrinkled her nose, looking almost offended at Narcissa as if she couldn't believe she would answer her; she simply snorted.
"At least you're marrying into a good family. I don't understand how you could break your engagement to a respectable family, Bellatrix, to get engaged to-" Walburga gave me a scornful look as if she was looking at dirt. "-this."
"Careful, Aunt Walburga." Bellatrix hissed hatefully, her eyes almost glowing red. I could feel Bellatrix's form twitch as she released her magic. I could see more than one shudder at Bellatrix. I quickly placed my hand on Bellatrix's thigh and squeezed it tightly. The change was immediate; Bellatrix's aura disappeared, and she returned to a neutral expression. "Lestrange was pathetic, useless. Serena is better in every way."
"What's the point of her being better when her father is a filthy Muggle? Lestrange was an excellent pureblood, not some half-blood who bears a Muggle's name as her surname." Walburga spat. I frowned but didn't even look at her. My concentration was on Walburga. Bellatrix seemed to want to drain all her blood right then and there. I moved my hand up her thigh until it landed dangerously on her crotch. Bellatrix flinched but was effectively distracted. Walburga didn't seem to understand that she was one moment away from being killed by her niece, but Arcturus did.
"Enough, Walburga." Arcturus interrupted. Walburga seemed to want to retort, but just one look from Lord Black was enough to shut her up and look back at her plate. "Are you in contact with anyone in the Prince family, Miss Snape? So we can discuss the betrothal contract." I stopped stiffly, dug my nails into Bellatrix's thigh, and looked at her almost in panic. She raised an eyebrow, and I wanted to groan in frustration.
"Not really, Lucius is my sponcer, he handles the contracts on my behalf." I said honestly with a shrug. "My mother, Eileen Prince, was cast out of the family by her father, but as a joke to him, I happen to be the last of the family alive; everyone else died." I snorted in amusement as I took a bite of the food in front of me. I heard a gasp from beside me and looked at Bellatrix, who was staring at me in disbelief.
"Are you… Sure about that information?" Arcturus interrupted me, and I nodded without hesitation.
"My grandfather passed away half a year ago. I didn't really care, but I did some research to see if another Prince was alive. It turns out that, of the direct family, none live, I'm the only one who shares direct blood from the main line; the others have various degrees of separation, like any pureblood family." I shrugged, "Why do you ask, if I may know?" I asked Arcturus curiously, and he shook his head.
"Don't worry, I'll take care of everything," he said simply, and I looked at Bellatrix, confused. She sighed and shook her head. "By the way, I had Kreacher prepare the room next to Bellatrix for you to stay." Arcturus said.
"No need, grandfather, she will stay with me." That stopped Arcturus momentarily, but he nodded and said nothing, curious. I looked at Bellatrix's parents, and neither of them seemed to have any problem with such an arrangement. I wrinkled my nose but said nothing.
I shrugged and started talking to Druella, Bellatrix, and Narcissa's mother. She had some interesting stories to tell about Bellatrix when she was younger, who could only groan in frustration.
----
Once we finished dinner and said goodbye for the rest of the night, we barely crossed the door to Bellatrix's room when she jumped on me. It would have been more exciting if she hadn't gone straight for my neck to bite me and draw blood.
"Really, Bella?" I asked incredulously, she didn't answer, she just continued drawing my blood. At this point, I was already used to it, and it had only been a week since she had become a vampire. With a sigh, I grabbed her thigh with one of my hands and her butt with the other, Bellatrix quickly adjusted herself, she wrapped her legs tightly around my waist and her arms gripped my shoulders tightly.
Once I had her comfortably held, I started to walk and let myself fall onto the bed for more comfort. Bellatrix just curled up in my lap. At no point did she stop drinking my blood; at least another 10 minutes passed before she separated.
"That was delicious, thanks, Sera." She kissed the corner of my mouth, and I rolled my eyes.
"I'm glad to serve as a premium blood bag for you." I huffed, and she rolled her eyes.
"Don't be a crybaby, I had to get the taste of that bad blood out of my mouth," she complained. At no point did she make any move to get off my lap; in fact, she kept pecking my neck now and then or giving light bites.
"How many souls do you have now?" I asked curiously, and she hummed lightly.
"A little over 100." My eyebrows rose. "Most of them are animals; only like a dozen or so of them are people. Don't worry, I made sure to drain the people who would deserve it. Filthy, raping muggles, they're easy enough to find." She snorted. "But they definitely leave a horrible taste in my mouth. They'll serve better as extra lives for me."
"I'm glad you're having fun," I said dryly. She snorted but didn't respond. She took off the shirt she was wearing and started kissing me, Merlin. I love her. I kissed her back hungrily as my arms wrapped around her waist. I could feel Bellatrix's restless hands removing my clothes.
" W -wait, mmmh, slow down, I-I had to tell you something." I moaned lightly as I tried to push Bellatrix away. I had managed to get Aria off of me and threw her to the side. My bra came off just as quickly as she began to kiss my neck before moving down to my collarbone and sucking hard. "I-I remembered you were complaining, t-about not having Baskerville, mmmh!" I moaned loudly, I moved my hands and ripped her bra off her, and threw her across the room. We both moaned at the skin-to-skin contact between our breasts.
"Do we have to talk about this now?" Bellatrix growled hoarsely, pulling away slightly.
"Yeah, if not, I'll forget about it." I said as I caught my breath, she rolled her eyes but made no effort to kiss me again. "Since the template didn't come with familiars, why don't you get some of your own?" I asked quickly, and she tilted her head. I shrugged. "I know we went on a 'safari' recently, but I'm sure you'd love a dragon as a familiar." I said suggestively, before leaning down and kissing her neck, I barely managed to kiss it lightly before she pulled away.
"What? A dragon? " She asked, surprised.
"Well, yeah, we just have to capture one, and you have to drain its blood or do whatever you do to a familiar. Why stop at that? Not just dragons, but giants, trolls, nundus, basically anything alive. We know where to find them already; we just have to go back." I explained simply, really, level 0 Alucard had the potential to bring about an army on the level of Sung Jing Woo, the monarch of shadows. She just had to kill strong individuals. Alucard was simply limited by his low-level world. Putting that aside, I pulled Bellatrix in for a kiss; she pulled away, and I groaned in frustration.
"Let's go." She said simply as she stood up, and I looked at her stupidly.
"Where to?" I asked, confused.
"To find me a dragon." She looked at me, madness dancing in her eyes, her face wreathed in a huge smile that, with her fangs now, seemed more manic.
"What?! Now?! We're half naked, I'm horny, Bella, we can't leave like this!" I exclaimed incredulously. She snorted as she got dressed again.
"It's your fault for giving me the idea, now I want my dragon," she said simply, and I moaned loudly.
" Beeellaaaa, can't we go tomorrow? I promise, we'll go wherever you want, just, can you go back to bed? " I begged pathetically, she ignored me, and she simply took my clothes and threw them at me.
"The faster I get my dragon, the faster I can have sex with you." I moaned loudly. In retrospect, I take full responsibility for this.
"I hate you, let's go get that stupid dragon," I huffed as I stood up. Next time, I'll set an alarm or a note somewhere, and I'll never talk during sex again.
"I want a Hungarian Horntail." I sighed as I grabbed Cia and opened a portal. This is going to be a long and frustrating night.