The atmosphere in that small tea room at Gaunt Manor was, to say the least, uncomfortable.
Aurelian Gaunt sat stiffly in one of the armchairs. Directly across from him, invading any semblance of personal space, stood Bellatrix Lestrange. The fearsome and sadistic Death Eater had her elbows resting on her knees, cradling her pale face in her hands, and was giving him a broad smile as she looked at him intently.
Aurelian blinked a couple of times, genuinely bewildered. He simply didn't understand what on earth she was doing there.
Just ten minutes ago, he had been enjoying a quiet, delicious breakfast in the mansion's main dining room. Then, out of nowhere, Bellatrix had appeared like a whirlwind and, without even letting him take the last bite of his toast, had dragged him out of the room by the arm. The abrupt interruption had left behind a deeply angry Stinky, who was surely muttering curses in the kitchen right now and kicking himself because his master hadn't been able to finish the meal he'd so carefully prepared for him.
Enduring the witch's intense gaze for another minute, Aurelian narrowed his eyes and broke the silence.
"How are you, Bellatrix? How's everything?" he asked politely, though his tone betrayed his caution.
Bellatrix let out a soft, sharp laugh. She didn't take her dark eyes off Aurelian's for even a fraction of a second.
"Fine… very fine, my dear little Lord," she replied, her smile widening a little more.
Aurelian sighed inwardly. Trying to get out of that uncomfortable and surreal situation as quickly as possible, he got straight to the point.
"Do you need something from me? I have matters to attend to today."
Bellatrix nodded slowly. She tilted her head to one side, like a curious raven, and then raised a hand, pointing her index finger directly at her chest. To Aurelian's utter surprise, his father's always lethal and terrifying lieutenant suddenly adopted a strangely shy posture. An obvious and unusual blush tinged her pale cheeks.
"I... I was wondering, Aurelian," Bellatrix began, nervously twirling a strand of her tousled black hair, "if you, being his son, could help me... get a little closer to the Dark Lord."
Aurelian stood completely still. He processed the strange request and the Death Eater's childlike demeanor.
"Get closer to him romantically?" Aurelian asked, raising a questioning eyebrow.
Bellatrix bit her lower lip and nodded slowly, her eyes shining with devotion.
Aurelian leaned back in his chair, rubbing the bridge of his nose with two fingers.
"If my memory serves me correctly, Bellatrix, you're married. To Rodolphus Lestrange," Aurelian reminded her, appealing to logic in a situation that was utterly devoid of it.
Bellatrix made a dismissive gesture with her hand, downplaying the importance of her marriage as if it were a mere formality.
"Oh, pff… Rodolphus would understand perfectly," Bellatrix asserted with conviction. "He knows who's truly important."
Aurelian nodded very slowly, not entirely convinced, but knowing the people who followed his father, it must be true.
As he watched her, Aurelian's mind quickly drifted to his knowledge of the original history of that wonderful world in which he found himself. He knew, from the books and movies he had once read and watched in his past life, that canonically, Bellatrix and his father would eventually have a daughter in the midst of the war. A war that never happened.
But this world, his current reality, was already light-years away from that original script. Aurelian really didn't want to have a sister. It would be incredibly strange and problematic if, after nearly eighteen years in this world and being an only child, a younger sister suddenly appeared out of nowhere, born of Bellatrix's madness.
However, beyond the inconvenience it would cause him, there was a much more important issue at stake.
Aurelian knew, with certainty, that his father loved his mother deeply, desperately, and eternally. The love Tom Gaunt felt for Elaine wasn't a mere whim; it was alive. And ever since Voldemort had seen her again thanks to the Resurrection Stone, that love and affection had only grown stronger until it became the central pillar of his life; Aurelian believed his father's sanity was sustained by it.
A small smile formed on Aurelian's lips as he thought of the nights at the mansion, of those times when, walking silently through the hallways when he was a little hungry or simply didn't feel like sleeping, he had heard his father whisper the name "Elaine" in the darkness, believing himself to be completely alone.
With that image in mind, the answer was crystal clear. No woman—let alone Bellatrix Lestrange—would ever take her mother's place.
Aurelian looked her in the eyes and shook her head, her tone becoming gentle yet firm.
"I'm sorry, Bellatrix. But I can't help you with that. Under no circumstances."
To his surprise, Bellatrix didn't explode in rage, didn't cast any curses at him, nor did she seem devastated. She simply let her hands drop. Her smile faded, replaced by a look of melancholy.
"I expected as much," Bellatrix murmured in a whisper, shrugging her shoulders slightly in resignation. "But... I suppose I had nothing to lose by asking."
Without saying another word, the fearsome witch rose from her seat. With her shoulders slumped and her gaze fixed on the carpet, she walked with her head down toward the exit of the hall, suddenly appearing much more fragile and weak than her reputation suggested.
Aurelian remained seated in silence, watching her disappear down the hallway. He crossed his arms, feeling a twinge of pity for her. He sighed, lost in his own thoughts as the echo of Bellatrix's footsteps faded away.
"What on earth do you say to a woman whose unrequited love is so deep that it has consumed her entirely?" Aurelian wondered. He didn't have the answer, and frankly, he'd rather never have to find out.
The heavy door to the ballroom closed behind him, miraculously muffling the hubbub, the music, and the incessant clinking of crystal glasses.
Aurelian leaned against the hallway wall and let out a sigh that seemed to rise from the depths of his soul. He was exhausted. His father's "small and exclusive" Christmas party had turned into a social gathering of epic proportions. As if the planets had aligned, every family had come up with the brilliant idea of attending with each and every one of their members. Aurelian had long since lost count of how many children, grumpy grandfathers, gossipy grandmothers, and distant uncles and aunts he'd had to greet with his best smile.
He rubbed his eyes wearily as he began walking down the dimly lit hallway of the mansion, loosening his tie desperately in search of air. He just wanted the silence of his room.
The sound of heels behind him distracted him. Turning slightly, he saw Hestia and Flora approaching. Unlike him, who looked as if he'd survived a war, the twins looked absolutely radiant. Their dresses were impeccable and their eyes still sparkled with energy; they were fascinated by this kind of atmosphere where they could exude their superiority, forge alliances, and trample on egos. Especially the latter.
When they reached him, they both embraced him from either side with that affection so characteristic of them.
"How are you, my love? We saw you slip away like a ghost," Hestia murmured, resting her head on his shoulder.
Aurelian paused for a moment to kiss each of them on the forehead.
"I'm just tired, my loves. My social interaction battery is drained for the rest of the decade. I just want to go to sleep," he confessed, letting out another sigh.
Hestia and Flora nodded in unison, smiling at him sympathetically.
"Then that's for the best. We'll go with you," Flora said tenderly, clinging tighter to his arm.
Aurelian raised an eyebrow, looking at them in surprise.
"Don't you want to stay at the party? You seemed to be enjoying terrorizing Lord Nott's wife."
The girls shook their heads, almost indignantly.
"If you're not there with us, then the party doesn't make any sense anymore," Hestia declared, as if it were a law.
With a small smile, Aurelian let himself be escorted to the safety of his room. As they crossed the threshold, exhaustion hit all three of them. Without even bothering to change their clothes, they collapsed directly onto the soft surface of the bed.
Aurelian lay on his back, while Hestia and Flora curled up on either side of his chest. The twins began rubbing their soft cheeks against his shirt, seeking his warmth. Instinctively, Aurelian raised his hands and began stroking their hair, slowly running his fingers down to trace their necks and backs, relaxing them completely.
Amid the silence and the caresses, Aurelian's mind drifted back to the events of the morning. He recalled Bellatrix Lestrange's broken gaze and resignation.
Driven by curiosity or stupidity, Aurelian let a question slip out into the air.
"Hey…" he murmured, his voice vibrating in the room. "I was thinking… What would you have done if I'd rejected you? If I'd told you I didn't want to be with you from the start?"
The atmosphere in the room changed in a microsecond.
Hestia and Flora stopped rubbing against him instantly. They sat up halfway, propping themselves on their elbows, and looked him up and down, narrowing their eyes. They pressed themselves against him with such force that it nearly took his breath away, like two snakes ready to suffocate their prey.
"Why exactly are you asking that, Aurelian?" Flora hissed, her voice dripping with venom. "Is there some bitch at the party who's seduced you?"
"Tell me her name and I'll skin her alive before dawn," Hestia added, her pupils dilated by the intensity of her jealousy.
Aurelian, sensing how quickly the conversation was escalating and feeling the danger, raised his hands in surrender, trying to appease the beasts.
"Hey, hey, calm down! It was just a hypothetical question. Pure curiosity, nothing more, I swear," he hurried to clarify, stroking their cheeks to quell their thirst for blood.
Feeling the sincerity in his voice, Hestia and Flora let out a sigh and relaxed again, resting their heads on his chest once more, though without loosening their iron grip.
"Ah, well… if it's hypothetically," Hestia began, tracing circles on Aurelian's chest, "I would have started with a highly concentrated love potion, administered daily in your meals."
"And if that hadn't worked," Flora continued in a casual tone, as if discussing the weather, "we would have kidnapped you and locked you in the deepest dungeons of Carrow Manor. With magical shackles so you couldn't leave, of course."
"Yes, and we would have used an ancient blood ritual—very painful but effective—to bind your magical core to ours. That way, you could never walk away from us without feeling like you were dying inside," Hestia concluded with a smile.
Aurelian listened as they listed strategies, each more disturbing, twisted, and terrifying than the last, all designed to break his will and bind him to them for the rest of eternity.
"But, thank goodness none of that was necessary," Flora whispered, planting a soft kiss on his jaw. "Because the boy we love most in the whole world loved us back."
"And we love you, so, so, so, so, so, so much..." Hestia added, leaving a trail of kisses down his neck.
Aurelian smiled, though his smile was a little tense as he processed the dark plans he had just heard. He didn't pull away. He held them tightly against his chest, burying his face in their hair.
"You are the most important thing in my life, my loves. I will never have eyes for anyone else," he whispered to them.
They closed their eyes, purring softly as they enjoyed the affection their soulmate was giving them, feeling completely safe in his arms.
"And you are our whole life, Aurelian," they whispered in unison in the dim light.
Aurelian closed his eyes, letting the exhaustion of the day finally overcome him. As he drifted off to sleep, feeling the weight of the two most important women in his life on his chest, one last thought crossed his mind.
Sometimes he forgot that he had fallen madly in love with two yanderes.
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