Peter swallowed deeply.
It was something that he himself had been thinking about. The other three and Harry were much more talented than him and there was no doubt that he would be left behind.
"You know as well as I do what's going on out there" Rookwood cut in with a whisper. "All the mudbloods and blood traitors will be killed along with those they associate with, you at least are smart enough to know that you definitely won't be safe" he pointed out.
Peter shrugged, not knowing what else to say but he had to concede the fact that Rookwood had a point. "You have the protection of being a pureblood" Rookwood continued. "You will be left alone so long as you don't associate with the scum of society, and you could be very useful to the Dark Lord yourself, you have 5 years of knowledge about the blood traitors" he said charismatically.
Peter shook his head, trying to rid his mind of the doubts.
"They are my friends" he hissed angrily though there was still a hint of doubt in his voice.
"Then you are signing your own death warrant and are an idiot, just think about it Peter, none of them can protect you from him" he said confidently. "None of them" he reiterated firmly. "Anyway, it's your life, you can die how you please I guess, makes no difference to me" he shrugged.
With that said the boy took the sheaf of parchment and packed his things before exiting the room, leaving a very thoughtful Peter Pettigrew in his wake.
(BREAK)
After checking the map, Harry arrived at the classroom he and Bellatrix had met in the previous week and began taking out the necessary books and parchment needed to complete the task.
"It seems as though you get to keep your bits then" Bellatrix sighed with mock disappointment. "Well, so far" she added with a grin.
The grin left Harry taken aback.
It was not the maniacal grin that he was used to seeing plastered on that face, but one of genuine amusement, and a grin that made her look very beautiful indeed.
He shook those thoughts from his head. 'That's Bellatrix LeStrange for Christ sake' he scolded himself. 'She is an insane killer, she killed Sirius' he reminded himself firmly.
" Out of interest, just what is it you do with the trophies of your victims?" he asked with a raised eyebrow.
"That is my business Potter" She replied, this time with a more recognisable sinister grin on her face, though her eyes were alight with amusement.
"Well, I haven't seen anyone limping around here" Harry responded with a shrug.
"That's because they have learnt not to cross me, especially after Rudolphus thought he could let his unworthy hands touch me" she returned with a look of disgust at the memory. "I hit him with a well placed shrinking charm" she explained.
Harry cringed at the thought of the results that spell had. "And speaking of Rudolphus" Bellatrix continued. "He is determined to get you back" she warned.
Harry snorted at that revelation.
"That idiot doesn't learn" he sighed while he shook his head.
"Rudolphus is a moron, I'll give you that, but he is very dangerous with that stupidity" Bellatrix intoned seriously. "I saw him curse a second year for sitting in his seat and she spent two weeks in the hospital wing" she informed him, clearly not approving of the boy's actions.
"What the hell did he curse her with?" Harry asked. "It must have been bad for her to be there for that long" he pointed out.
"No one knows" she shrugged. "But he got two month's detention for it" she explained.
"That's it?" Harry questioned angrily. "Obviously the curse could have killed her or she would have been out a lot quicker" he added knowingly.
"Dumbledore gave the punishment personally" Bellatrix revealed.
'No wonder why things are going to shit, you get a bloody detention for attempted murder' he seethed inwardly.
"Stupid twinkly-eyed git" he growled.
"Oh, not a fan of the lights exulted leader then?" Bellatrix, questioned, visually surprised by his outburst.
Harry shook his head.
"I don't think he's a bad guy, but he certainly isn't the saintly old man people make him out to be" he proclaimed knowingly, having experienced the secretive and somewhat manipulative nature of the man throughout his life. "You are a surprise Potter" Bellatrix replied with a smirk. "And there was me thinking you were like the rest of the Gryffindor's, queuing up to lick his boots" she added mockingly.
"You will never catch me licking anyone's boots" Harry vowed firmly. "I live by my own morals and do what's best for me and those I care about" he shrugged.
Bellatrix actually smiled at him, which unsettled him slightly.
"Now that is something I can respect, the world is full of people who want to look up to someone and not be their own person" she sighed.
Harry nodded his agreement.
"Shall we get this over with then?" he asked.
Bellatrix just nodded and the two settle down to complete their work. It was a little after an hour later that they both completed the task and parted ways, agreeing to meet the same time and place the following week.
Harry left the meeting feeling rather confused and experiencing mixed emotions. Although he knew he had actually enjoyed the time with her, as strange as it sounded in his own mind, he would not admit it to himself, he couldn't admit it to himself and he certainly would not admit that he was looking forward to seeing her again the next week.
As much as it bothered him, he could at least concede the point that she was interesting and her humour was very similar to his own; it seemed as though they had a fair amount in common but he knew that wouldn't last long as time went by. He knew exactly what she was going to become and it disgusted him even thinking about the similarities they shared. 'It's only until Christmas' he reminded himself firmly.
He entered the tower and joined James and Remus in their usual seats who were clearly transfixed on something. Evidently, Peter was still with Rookwood so he felt no need to inquire about the boy.
.
.
.
👓☕️Consider supporting me and enhance your reading experience with the ready-to-read PDFs I have on my Ko-fi.☕️👓
🎯https://ko-fi.com/bstories🎯