Linger
Title: Linger
Author: crumpledquill
Fandom: Harry Potter
Rating: R
Genre: AU
Pairing: Bellatrix/Tonks
Spoilers: None as it's AU
Disclaimer: I disclaim all characters etc that aren't mine.
Summary: Tonks sees a side to Bellatrix that not many other people have.
A/N: This is my first fanfiction in a long while. Let's just say I've had a major case of writer's block, so I'm very very very unsure about this.
She watches her from across the room, her expression manic and holding no sign of ever relenting. Nymphadora is trying her best to protect the children, fending off death eaters from all angles. Through the chaos around her she can still tell where her allies are and can pinpoint her foes. Bellatrix Lestrange is ready to kill; Tonks can feel it in her blood.
She pushes Luna to Remus, who crouches down with her shielding her from a forbidden curse. She’s quick as she literally runs into the woman who has ‘avada kedavra’ on the tip of her tongue. The death eater falls to the floor off guard. Nymphadora crumples beside her.
“Filthy half-blood wench!” she screams. Tonks jumps up quickly at that, her coat billowing around her.
“Wotcher Auntie!” she speaks whilst wiping blood off of her lip, Bellatrix is less than amused.
“Don’t you dare!” she manages, something flashes beneath her gaze - a hint of recognition?
Bellatrix pulls herself up off the ground, and as quick as lightning fires a curse toward her niece. They duel. Tonks had always prided herself in being the quickest and most agile out of the order, and yet even she had trouble keeping up. Her aunt was relentless and she knew if she really wanted to she could kill her, right here, right now - except she didn’t.
That recognition. That flicker behind the death eater’s eyes was making her hold back. This was mere child’s play to Bellatrix. Tonks was an obstacle in the way of her main goal. But why didn’t she just move her out of the way?
“What’s the matter? Can’t do it?”
Bellatrix’s eyes narrowed at that. The stupid brat was goading her, teasing her.
“Stupid girl!” she hissed, no longer holding back.
She fired curse after curse toward Tonks. Pushing the girl backward until eventually she fell. Bellatrix was quick in grabbing her arm and apparating away.
***
Her eyes flickered open and she sat up, only to quickly be knocked back down again by the dizziness in her head. She groaned, her eyes shutting again as she tried to stop the world from spinning. Her hand came up to her brow, leaving wet and sticky - obviously she’d hit her head.
“I see the filthy little traitor has decided to join us.”
She knew that voice. It made her stomach churn, but Tonks fought against the nausea and managed to sit up. Her eyes cracked open once more, and in the dim light she could see Bellatrix, twirling both of their wands in her hand.
“Where-” she began, only to feel a sharp blow against her head. It sent her reeling back again, her head splitting from where Bellatrix hit her.
“You do not speak to me!” her voice screamed in Tonks’ ear. That alone made the young auror’s body spasm in pain. When her aunt moved away from her, she left a dull ringing in her ear.
Tonks dared to open her eyes again. She stayed silent to let them adjust to the lack of light without another disturbance. Her aunt’s footsteps echoed throughout the chamber she was held in but she couldn’t make out where she was due to being half deaf through her screaming. Where ever she was, the only thing she was sure of was that she was defenceless and most certainly alone.
After what felt like forever she mustered the strength to sit up again. That was when Bellatrix whipped her head around, a cruel grin plastered across her face.
“Feeling a bit better my dear?” she asked somewhat softly, nearing Tonks in an almost predatory way.
Nymphadora looked up at her, her eyes full of confusion. She opened her mouth to speak but thought it best not to. Either way she knew what was coming. After all, the reason her aunt spent so long in Azkaban was because of her flair for torture. She was next - she knew it.
“Well?” Bellatrix insisted, her insanity getting the better of her. Her fists balled up by her sides, one hand clutching firmly onto the two wands she held. Tonks could’ve sworn she heard a crackle of magic, but then again she couldn’t trust her hearing right now.
“I asked you a question!”
Tonks met her eyes, trying to see beneath the madness. She could see the doubt and frustration, the hatred toward her.
“Why didn’t you just kill me?” she asked quickly, speaking up in a voice that she tried her best to make sound strong. No matter what she was going to get hurt, but she was genuinely curious. Even if it sounded like she was just preying on that uncertainty - she wasn’t.
“I don’t think-”
Tonks didn’t give her time to finish,
“If not now then back there, back at the Ministry. I admit you overpowered me. You could’ve killed me, if not worse - but you didn’t. Why?”
“I don’t have to justify my actions to a filthy blood-traitor like you!”
Bellatrix didn’t move however, she remained still, staring at her niece. Her gaze softened somewhat and it seemed like Tonks could see a woman that no one else knew. But that was just a moment, one single solitary moment. A moment later Bellatrix raised her arm, and with the power of two wands screamed,
“CRUCIO!”
**
When Tonks comes around the second time Bellatrix is lying beside her. When she opens her eyes she meets that of her auntie’s, and she could swear she seemed like a different person.
“You look so much like her,” Bellatrix admits quietly, her hand reaches out for her cheek. Tonks flinches as an automatic reflex, expecting a blow or a slap of some sort. Instead she is met with a gentle caress. Something she would’ve thought her aunt to be incapable of.
“Who?” she replies, already knowing the answer.
Her aunt pulls away, standing up with her back to her. She seems to curl into herself, before turning back around. Tonks sits up defensively, expecting another round of torture to come her way.
Instead there is silence, save a distant sound of water. The two just look at each other, as if trying to read what the other is thinking. Two opposites trapped in wonder of each other - in hope.
“We used to come here as teenagers, during the summer,” Bellatrix was the one to break the silence, “It used to be pretty during the summer months.”
Nymphadora slowly tried to stand up, but her legs crumpled underneath her.
“Why did you bring me here?” she asked out of frustration.
“It was your mother’s favourite place, this poky little cave by the sea.”
Bellatrix walked toward the hunched up girl and crouched down beside her. Her long worn fingernails ran through Tonks’ hair. Tonks shivered, partly out of fear and partly because of something else, something she couldn’t quite put her finger on. It was almost like affection.
“You keep asking me Nymphadora why I brought you here, why I didn’t kill you.”
Tonks looked up at her slowly. Years of auror training forgotten in that moment - she felt like a child again.
“But you stopped me,” Bellatrix continued quietly, “You stopped me killing Sirius. You stopped me doing what I was meant to do. You were alone and you stopped me. Now let me ask you something - why?”
Tonks furrowed her brow, wasn’t it obvious? She was doing her duty. She stood for everything right and she cared about Sirius, he was her friend, her comrade.
“Because I couldn’t let you just kill my friend.”
Bellatrix shook her head,
“Then why didn’t you just kill me instead? He’s my cousin Nymphadora and I couldn’t care less about him, let alone my blood-traitor sister’s brat!”
“I-I don’t see things the way you do. And I never will.”
She shook her head again, laughing but this wasn’t a manic laugh.
“You’re wrong - you do. You felt it. You didn’t want to hurt me.”
Tonks stared at her. She was right - somehow,
“Well you didn’t kill me. You Lingered!”
Bellatrix leaned over quickly. She kissed her deeply, hungrily, as if she could not exist without her touch. The kiss broke as Bellatrix apparated away, her lips disappearing from Nymphadora’s. Tonks panted, trying desperately to catch her breath. She felt a familiar weight in her hand. Somehow Bellatrix had slipped her wand back to her without her noticing. An act of mercy? She wasn’t sure.
Author: crumpledquill
Fandom: Harry Potter
Rating: R
Genre: AU
Pairing: Bellatrix/Tonks
Spoilers: None as it's AU
Disclaimer: I disclaim all characters etc that aren't mine.
Summary: Tonks sees a side to Bellatrix that not many other people have.
A/N: This is my first fanfiction in a long while. Let's just say I've had a major case of writer's block, so I'm very very very unsure about this.
She watches her from across the room, her expression manic and holding no sign of ever relenting. Nymphadora is trying her best to protect the children, fending off death eaters from all angles. Through the chaos around her she can still tell where her allies are and can pinpoint her foes. Bellatrix Lestrange is ready to kill; Tonks can feel it in her blood.
She pushes Luna to Remus, who crouches down with her shielding her from a forbidden curse. She’s quick as she literally runs into the woman who has ‘avada kedavra’ on the tip of her tongue. The death eater falls to the floor off guard. Nymphadora crumples beside her.
“Filthy half-blood wench!” she screams. Tonks jumps up quickly at that, her coat billowing around her.
“Wotcher Auntie!” she speaks whilst wiping blood off of her lip, Bellatrix is less than amused.
“Don’t you dare!” she manages, something flashes beneath her gaze - a hint of recognition?
Bellatrix pulls herself up off the ground, and as quick as lightning fires a curse toward her niece. They duel. Tonks had always prided herself in being the quickest and most agile out of the order, and yet even she had trouble keeping up. Her aunt was relentless and she knew if she really wanted to she could kill her, right here, right now - except she didn’t.
That recognition. That flicker behind the death eater’s eyes was making her hold back. This was mere child’s play to Bellatrix. Tonks was an obstacle in the way of her main goal. But why didn’t she just move her out of the way?
“What’s the matter? Can’t do it?”
Bellatrix’s eyes narrowed at that. The stupid brat was goading her, teasing her.
“Stupid girl!” she hissed, no longer holding back.
She fired curse after curse toward Tonks. Pushing the girl backward until eventually she fell. Bellatrix was quick in grabbing her arm and apparating away.
***
Her eyes flickered open and she sat up, only to quickly be knocked back down again by the dizziness in her head. She groaned, her eyes shutting again as she tried to stop the world from spinning. Her hand came up to her brow, leaving wet and sticky - obviously she’d hit her head.
“I see the filthy little traitor has decided to join us.”
She knew that voice. It made her stomach churn, but Tonks fought against the nausea and managed to sit up. Her eyes cracked open once more, and in the dim light she could see Bellatrix, twirling both of their wands in her hand.
“Where-” she began, only to feel a sharp blow against her head. It sent her reeling back again, her head splitting from where Bellatrix hit her.
“You do not speak to me!” her voice screamed in Tonks’ ear. That alone made the young auror’s body spasm in pain. When her aunt moved away from her, she left a dull ringing in her ear.
Tonks dared to open her eyes again. She stayed silent to let them adjust to the lack of light without another disturbance. Her aunt’s footsteps echoed throughout the chamber she was held in but she couldn’t make out where she was due to being half deaf through her screaming. Where ever she was, the only thing she was sure of was that she was defenceless and most certainly alone.
After what felt like forever she mustered the strength to sit up again. That was when Bellatrix whipped her head around, a cruel grin plastered across her face.
“Feeling a bit better my dear?” she asked somewhat softly, nearing Tonks in an almost predatory way.
Nymphadora looked up at her, her eyes full of confusion. She opened her mouth to speak but thought it best not to. Either way she knew what was coming. After all, the reason her aunt spent so long in Azkaban was because of her flair for torture. She was next - she knew it.
“Well?” Bellatrix insisted, her insanity getting the better of her. Her fists balled up by her sides, one hand clutching firmly onto the two wands she held. Tonks could’ve sworn she heard a crackle of magic, but then again she couldn’t trust her hearing right now.
“I asked you a question!”
Tonks met her eyes, trying to see beneath the madness. She could see the doubt and frustration, the hatred toward her.
“Why didn’t you just kill me?” she asked quickly, speaking up in a voice that she tried her best to make sound strong. No matter what she was going to get hurt, but she was genuinely curious. Even if it sounded like she was just preying on that uncertainty - she wasn’t.
“I don’t think-”
Tonks didn’t give her time to finish,
“If not now then back there, back at the Ministry. I admit you overpowered me. You could’ve killed me, if not worse - but you didn’t. Why?”
“I don’t have to justify my actions to a filthy blood-traitor like you!”
Bellatrix didn’t move however, she remained still, staring at her niece. Her gaze softened somewhat and it seemed like Tonks could see a woman that no one else knew. But that was just a moment, one single solitary moment. A moment later Bellatrix raised her arm, and with the power of two wands screamed,
“CRUCIO!”
**
When Tonks comes around the second time Bellatrix is lying beside her. When she opens her eyes she meets that of her auntie’s, and she could swear she seemed like a different person.
“You look so much like her,” Bellatrix admits quietly, her hand reaches out for her cheek. Tonks flinches as an automatic reflex, expecting a blow or a slap of some sort. Instead she is met with a gentle caress. Something she would’ve thought her aunt to be incapable of.
“Who?” she replies, already knowing the answer.
Her aunt pulls away, standing up with her back to her. She seems to curl into herself, before turning back around. Tonks sits up defensively, expecting another round of torture to come her way.
Instead there is silence, save a distant sound of water. The two just look at each other, as if trying to read what the other is thinking. Two opposites trapped in wonder of each other - in hope.
“We used to come here as teenagers, during the summer,” Bellatrix was the one to break the silence, “It used to be pretty during the summer months.”
Nymphadora slowly tried to stand up, but her legs crumpled underneath her.
“Why did you bring me here?” she asked out of frustration.
“It was your mother’s favourite place, this poky little cave by the sea.”
Bellatrix walked toward the hunched up girl and crouched down beside her. Her long worn fingernails ran through Tonks’ hair. Tonks shivered, partly out of fear and partly because of something else, something she couldn’t quite put her finger on. It was almost like affection.
“You keep asking me Nymphadora why I brought you here, why I didn’t kill you.”
Tonks looked up at her slowly. Years of auror training forgotten in that moment - she felt like a child again.
“But you stopped me,” Bellatrix continued quietly, “You stopped me killing Sirius. You stopped me doing what I was meant to do. You were alone and you stopped me. Now let me ask you something - why?”
Tonks furrowed her brow, wasn’t it obvious? She was doing her duty. She stood for everything right and she cared about Sirius, he was her friend, her comrade.
“Because I couldn’t let you just kill my friend.”
Bellatrix shook her head,
“Then why didn’t you just kill me instead? He’s my cousin Nymphadora and I couldn’t care less about him, let alone my blood-traitor sister’s brat!”
“I-I don’t see things the way you do. And I never will.”
She shook her head again, laughing but this wasn’t a manic laugh.
“You’re wrong - you do. You felt it. You didn’t want to hurt me.”
Tonks stared at her. She was right - somehow,
“Well you didn’t kill me. You Lingered!”
Bellatrix leaned over quickly. She kissed her deeply, hungrily, as if she could not exist without her touch. The kiss broke as Bellatrix apparated away, her lips disappearing from Nymphadora’s. Tonks panted, trying desperately to catch her breath. She felt a familiar weight in her hand. Somehow Bellatrix had slipped her wand back to her without her noticing. An act of mercy? She wasn’t sure.