Desperate Times... (Cygnus Black)

Tonight was the night. The night when she was going to finally stand up for what she wanted. Bellatrix was going to tell her father that it was off...all of it was off. She wanted to be free of the contract that he had bound her to all those years ago. She wanted the choice to marry whomever she chose. And she wanted her father to know that it was her choice and not his...”Father.”

[/b] Bellatrix Black stood in front of Cygnus, her chin held high, her robes straightened perfectly and her black hair pulled back into a tight bun. There wasn’t a hair out of place on her head, something that she had learned was necessary when speaking with the patriarch of her family. If there was something that was even remotely upsetting regarding her appearance, it would give her father an excuse to go off on her.

Cygnus looked up from the paper that he was reading, letting his half-moon reading spectacles fall down the bridge of his nose. He was beginning to age - Bellatrix could see that now. He looked older than he did the last time that she saw him, ”Good evening, Bellatrix. Was there something that I could help you with? Or are you perfectly content in being a nuisance and distraction this evening? Honestly, it’s as if you were brought up by barbarians.”[/b] He placed the Prophet on his lap and then picked up the mug that was sitting on the table next to him. It smelled strongly of alcohol - namely due to the fact that he had poured half a bottle of his finest aged scotch into the cup before the grounds, ”You have a blatant disregard for respect, you know that? You’re a disgrace.”[/b] He took a large sip of the coffee before slamming the cup down beside him and stammering to his feet, ”A disgrace.”[/b]

Bellatrix was silent. She flinched slightly when he slammed the mug down, but refused to stand down. She had to prove to her father that she wasn’t weak. That had always been the game. She was always trying to prove herself to someone. She bowed her head as if emitting an unspoken apology to the man that was before her, ”Father I-”[/b]

”Don’t you open your mouth you filthy little whore-”[/b] Cygnus breathed as he took a step forward. He grabbed her cheeks, turning her face in his stride and glaring at her. Bellatrix could smell the alcohol thick on his breath, ”I’m not finished speaking. Rumor has it you’ve been sleeping around with the Maxwell boy again.”[/b]

Bells didn’t know what to say. Her green eyes were avoiding those of her fathers - for she knew that once she looked into his eyes, she would see the similarities. They had the same eyes, Cygnus and Bellatrix. Those piercing green ones that seemed an endless pit of despair and self-loathing. Instead she gritted her teeth together and kept her eyes trained on the right most wall...until Cygnus yanked her jaw even harder and she had no choice but to look at her Father.

His eyes were blood-shot, no doubt the product of too much drinking and gambling and not enough sleep. Wrinkles had begun to spread out from his eyes and cascaded all the way down his face. She could see the anger rooted deep in those green irises of his. And she wanted nothing more than to disown him in that moment. She wasn’t the disgrace - He was. He was the man that had cost them their fortune and their pride. He had all but destroyed the Black family name. Why should it have been her fault? Why should she have to pay the price? She spit. Bellatrix spit on Cygnus, causing him to react by dropping her jaw, ”Don’t you dare touch me, you squalid twit. You’re not my father.”[/b] She growled, completely and utterly losing her cool, ”You’re not even a man. You’re a poor excuse for a human being.”[/b]

Cygnus could feel the anger mounting and he lunged forward, his hands going for his daughters neck, but she was too quick. She moved out of the way, sending her father head first into the wall that had previously been behind her, ”It’s over, Cygnus.”[/b] She growled, reaching for her wand and pulling it on the man. He was far too drunk to do anything but stand there stunned, ”The marriage, the betrothal, all of it. It’s done.”[/b] She took a step forward and pressed the tip of her wand into his chest, digging it in with all of her might, ”You are never to come near me or Zeke or Mother, or Narcissa and Andromeda ever again, do you understand?”[/b] She could feel a strange sense of power flooding through her veins as she spoke. She had called it off. All of it. No more Rodolphus...She and Zeke could finally be together. The strangest feeling spread through her entire being. It was almost as if she was alive for the first time. Every muscle in her body screamed out for her to do more...rage toward him more. But she wanted nothing more than to go find Zeke and tell him what she had done. For him. For her. For them, ”I hope you die alone and fully aware that you’ve destroyed your family.”[/b]

With that, Bellatrix Black left her father’s quarters, fully intent on finding Zeke and proposing to him herself.



Cygnus was still in a bit of shock. Anger had spread through his entire existence as he stumbled through the Forbidden Forest. Right after Bellatrix had decided to throw her own feminist party, he had received a letter from the most noble Lord Voldemort. Now, even though Cyg knew that he was less than fit to be seeing the Dark Lord - considering he had never been so drunk in his entire life - he knew that he had little to no choice about coming. He moved as quickly as he could - which, with all the stumbling, wasn’t very fast at all. He staggered a bit, over tree branches and around the slightly worn pathways of the forest until he could no longer see the light of the castle from within the trees. He lifted his wand, ”Lumos.”[/b] He breathed, as the tip illuminated, reveling that he was indeed going in the right direction. He stumbled into the clearing that was supposed to be the backdrop for this meeting, his head held high just as his daughers had been when she entered his chambers those few hours ago.

”I’m here!”[/b] Cygnus yelled into the darkness, raising his arms so that they were drawn out to the sides of him. He was tired of waiting, all he wanted to do was get this damn meeting out of the way so that he could go back to drinking his life away, ”Merlin Dammit! Come on, Riddle, some of us have things that we need to attend to!”[/b] He used to be afraid of the Dark Lord, but with his daughter's rebellion still fresh on his mind, there was no way that he was going to back down from anything. He was tired of her, he was tired of being summoned like a puppy whenever the Dark Lord needed something from him. And he was mostly tired of his life. Everything was in shambles...and yet, he just couldn’t stop.

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Cygnus looked around, still seeing nothing. He was beginning to become fed up with the fact that he had practically rushed out here all for The Dark Lord to be late. Honestly, who was this man that he was supposed to pledge his allegiance to? Nothing more than a petty, untimely fool in Cygnus’ opinion. The man put down his arms in a huff and reached into his pocket, pulling out the flask that was there and taking a large swig. It was too early or late for all this nonsense. He had a poker game that was waiting for him back at the Inn. Slowly, Cgynus began to turn around, convinced that no one was going to show up to greet him for this alleged ‘top secret meeting.’ It was then that he heard the voice. It most certainly wasn’t that of his master, it was far too young-sounding and had too much emotion in it. Emotion was never allowed when the Dark Lord spoke. Almost instantaneously he recognized it. Deliberately and with as much balance as he could currently muster, Cgynus turned around and found himself face-to-face with Zeke Maxwell.

”Ah! Well if it isn’t young Master Maxwell. I dare say that you’re out quite past your bed time, you scum. Shouldn’t you be tending to your pathetic Hufflepuff of a mother, badger?”

[/b] Cyg breathed as he looked over the boy that stood in front of him. Of course, he knew him to be the subject of his daughters affections as of late. And that was when it all started dawning on him. The reason that Bellatrix had pulled that little stunt back there in the room at the inn. They were protecting each other, protecting the love that they shared. Cygnus Black physically laughed aloud as he stared at the pathetic young boy before him. How could he be so blind?

Cgynus was mildly amused at the boy’s choice of words and his green eyes sparkled with delight as Zeke baited him, ”You’ve always been the little smart arse, haven’t you?”[/b] He asked as he took another sip from his flask and causally pointed his wand at the boy. He was tempted to throw a hex at him right then and there, but he refrained, having far too much fun playing verbal ping-pong with the youth. If Zeke thought that he knew everything about his family affairs then he was sorely mistaken. There would be time for hexes and anger, but right now, Cyg just wanted to see how far that he could push the young Slytherin boy, ”Yes, as a matter of fact, I do have a poker game that’s calling my name. So if you could just...move out of the way, that would be much appreciated.”[/b] He yawned slightly as he looked at Zeke.

”You’re here to fix my problems?”[/b] Cgynus raised both of his eyebrows as he smiled slightly. It was a twisted and deranged smile, one that had most often been seen on the lips of Bellatrix Black. It was no surprise in that moment that the pair of them were related; they seemed to have the same sadistic view on life and punishment, ”Enlighten me, dear boy. How do you plan on doing that? Going to Imperius me to tell Bellatrix that she no longer has to marry the Lestrange boy? I hardly think that would work.”[/b] He was playing with fire, he could see the anger in the boy’s eyes, but he knew that he could not quit. Not yet. Not until he saw him crack under his words, ”You know she’ll go through with it anyways. She’s in love with him, poor girl.”[/b] He knew that he was lying, Bellatirx was no more in love with Rodolphs Lestrange than she was in love with a rock. But he knew that the very thought would throw Zeke Maxwell for a loop that would be...unrecoverable.

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It was surprising to Cygnus that none of his insults seemed to be sticking; normally he saw the Maxwell boy as soft-skinned. He took offense to everything and often seemed to react emotionally to things that were said. However, now he seemed cooler than an icicle. The very thought made the Black Patriarch smile slightly - perhaps Zeke was not the dimwit that he once thought that he was. No matter, there was still no way in Hell that he was going to marry his daughter off to some Hufflepuff’s son. No way in the world. It didn’t matter how much money the Maxwells had in that fortune of theirs. What mattered was that their blood was not entirely poor. It was not entirely...Slytherin. The Black family bled Silver and Emerald and Bellatrix’s match had to do the same. Therefore, the only logical choice had been the Lestranges. Not to mention, their darling matriarch and patriarch loved the ever loving shite out of his daughter. It was a match made in heaven - or rather a match that he himself had made inside hell’s gates, ”Well I certainly hope that this little exception of yours won’t take very long. You’re looking a little under the weather-”

[/b] The man narrowed his eyes at Zeke, ”Perhaps you should turn in for the night before you get yourself into trouble.”[/b] It wasn’t a question, it was a demand. Cygnus had no time to deal with Zeke Maxwell and his petty little hero complex that he seemed to have developed over the past couple of minutes.

Cygnus pulled his sleeves back and tucked his wand under his arm, using his free hands to slowly clap at the boy, ”I have to say, Young Master Maxwell, you’re quite the spit-fire. Perhaps I underestimated you. However, I will not be owling my game to tell them that I’ll be late. Trust me.”[/b] He clapped for a few seconds more before smiling at the boy. He was pathetic really, thought he was doing everything he was because he was standing up for Bellatrix. Little did he know that Bellatrix Black was perfectly capable of taking care of herself, ”Tell me, Zeke,”[/b] The man let his eerily white teeth show through his smile, an indescribable chill running like a current between the pair of them, ”Do you honestly think that this little game you’re playing is going to win you any points with Bellatrix? You’re not worthy of her, don’t you see it? You’re pathetic.”[/b] He reached under his arm and pulled the flask back out, making sure to take a long and hefty swig this time that spread like wild-fire down his throat.

Cygnus watched as some sort of panic began to spread through the boy, physically manifesting itself in his pacing back and forth. Drunk as he was, he could still see the signs of a man that was chemically imbalanced, ”I’d like to see you-”[/b] The curse hit him, squarely in the chest, knocking him immediately to the ground. He could feel the pain spreading through his veins, each moment more excruciating than the next. Whoever had trained this young boy had made sure to do a decent job - he knew about how to control his emotions enough to cast, but let them rip when he had someone under the spell. It was nearly perfect. Except for the fact that he had given it up too early. The pain immediately subsided. He laughed. Harder than he had ever laughed before. Cygnus Black was no stranger to the Unforgivable that Zeke had just pulled - in fact, it was implemented on him regularly. He himself used it regularly, mostly on his own family. It was a power spell - one that made him feel completely and utterly in control.

”Oh you fool!”[/b] Cygnus said, managing to stand up, his left hand on his stomach, holding his ribs where they burned. It was so interesting to see that Maxwell boy giving way to the rise that rage and anger brought, ”She doesn’t love you! You’re a pawn! She doesn’t love anything or anyone! She’s so focused on her honor that she wouldn’t give way for anything else.”[/b] He said matter-of-factly. He knew his daughter, she was exactly like him. They were two of a kind and so he knew exactly the way that she saw the world, ”Now I will show you how to properly cast, child. CRUCIO!”[/b] He yelled as he pointed his wand directly at the boy. The anger flowed from his wand, from deep within, every moment that he held the curse, he was searing it with the most anger that he could muster.

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