HP: Shattered glass

Harry, ever the ignorant child, tried to reach up and grab a hold of Bellatrix's long, ringletted hair.

He did so, which to my surprise, only made the woman's grin wider.

But it was a cruel, heartless smile.

She raised her wand, pointing it at Harry's uncomprehending face. At my face.

I blanked.『 This should not be happening. 』

Where was Voldemort, why on Earth were Bellatrix Lestrange & Co. here?

Then it clicked.『 What if Harry isn't the child of prophecy this time around? 』

"Lacero putro," Bellatrix whispered lovingly, moving the tip of her wand in a distinct V-movement.

Harry let go of her hair and screamed. I couldn't feel his pain, but I knew what she had done.

There was now a deep V-shaped gash on Harry's left cheekbone. Blood dripped from the wound, blackening into a nasty rot upon making contact with the open air.

It was a testament to Bellatrix's mastery of the spell that she managed to inflict such critical damage without killing us.

Lily, upon seeing what the woman had done to her only child, lost her shit. Powerless as she was, she still struggled; uncaring for the ever-tightening ropes that were cutting into her body. All that mattered was reaching Harry. Reaching her son.

Bellatrix moved over to the wall, spearing the fabric of the swaddle Harry was inside of to one of the many spikes jutting from the walls.

She turned around, flicking her wand in Lily's direction. "Finite."

The ropes binding our mother disappeared, and she screamed in fury, barreling toward Bellatrix without hesitation. "I'll kill you! I'll fucking kill you!"

Rabastan whooped in glee as he sent a pinkish light soaring toward her legs, causing Lily's body to grow rigid as a board and fall forward mid-lunge, landing face-first at Bellatrix's feet.

There was a distinct cracking sound as Lily's nose made contact with the ground. It sounded like she had broken her nose.

Bellatrix sighed theatrically before snapping her fingers in the stocky man's direction, prompting him to grab Lily by her long red hair and yank her to her feet. He restrained her arms behind her back, locking them in place with his own.

She stared at the black-haired woman hatefully, the only body part she could move voluntarily being her eyes.

"If you scream again." Said Bellatrix, reaching out a hand to tap Lily on the nose playfully. "I will kill your son. If you move without my permission, I will kill your son. Are we clear?"

Our mother's hate did not leave her green eyes, but she understood all right.

"Good girl." Purred Bellatrix, casting the general counter-spell once more. "Finite."

Lily shook; with anger for what they had done to her family, and fear at what they would do to her son. There was not a hint of self-preservation in her eyes.

She didn't care what happened to her next.

"Here's the deal, little mudblood." She whispered, grabbing a handful of long red hair and yanking Lily's head forward. "I am going to Crucio you every minute. You will beg me for it with every fibre of your being; every single time. Otherwise, I will kill your son in front of you. Do we have an understanding?"

『 Jesus fucking Christ. 』I thought, unbelieving of what I had just heard.『 Is she serious? 』

Lily said nothing, casting her eyes toward Harry's crying figure instead.

The deranged female death eater in front of her didn't seem too happy to be ignored though. She smacked Lily across the face powerfully, grabbing her by the chin and forcing the other woman to stare directly into her cruel black eyes.

"Do we have an understanding?!" She screamed, spittle flying from her mouth.

I saw it in her then; as she was held up by the hair, nose bloody and broken.

I watched our as our mother's resistance broke. 

"Yes." Whispered Lily, eyes once again flickering toward Harry. "We have an understanding."

"Then you know what to do," Bellatrix whispered back.

Barty, now having tended to his wounds; averted his eyes, not willing or wanting to watch what would happen next. I didn't either.

"Please." Our mother begged her, tears streaming down her cheeks. "Please torture me."

"With great pleasure." Replied the death eater, stepping back and brandishing her wand. "Crucio!"

A stream of reddish lightning raced forward, hitting Lily's prone figure and making her collapse, writhing in pain. Her eyes rolled back into her head, while bolts of that same reddish energy crawled across her exposed skin, causing violent spasms wherever they reached.

For ten long seconds, my mother screamed in utter, terrible agony. I couldn't even fathom how much pain one needed to be in to make the noises that she made during that small period of time.

By the end of it, Bellatrix was heaving in exhaustion. Or was it pleasure?

『 Probably both. 』

Whichever one it was didn't matter.

Because she was at it again after exactly a minute had passed.

Again and again, waiting patiently for Lily to beg for more before continuing. Waiting for our mother's slurring voice to beg for more of that abominable torture.

I didn't believe in God. I never had. Not even my old mother had managed to make me believe, not once.

But the act taking place before me was a sin. An egregious, terrible sin.

There was no benefit to doing this. There was nothing to gain, no real justification other than doing it solely for her own amusement. 

I didn't want to watch it any longer. It was making me sick.

I watched as my new mother's sanity slipped away from her. Watched as her tears continued to fall until there was none left to cry.

And now that her tears were gone, her eyes started to bleed instead.

I watched as she begged for more.

As Bellatrix laughed with a wretched, terrible glee.

As the sticky red tears slid down her cheeks, running down onto the floor and pooling beside her head.

Unable to do a damn thing about it.

『 Someone. 』I begged in my mind.『 Anyone. Help her. Please. 』

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