Yellow

THE FIRST TIME Bellatrix Black truly sees the colour yellow for what it means, she's eleven-years-old and sitting on the Hogwarts Express for the first time and she's all alone because her twin sister, who's supposed to stick with her through thick and thin has abandoned her in favour of Rodolphus Lestrange. And she's been sitting in a silent compartment for maybe an hour or two, bored out of her mind despite the beautiful scenery surrounding her and then a a tiny girl with a round, chubby face in a yellow cardigan comes in, asking if she can join Bellatrix in the compartment.

"I got kicked out of my first compartment, they said I was too loud." The girls says, and she is, extremely so and Bellatrix hates when people speak loudly because when they speak loudly that means they're mad and when they're mad, bad things happen. Oblivious to Bellatrix's flinching, the girl asks "Can I sit here?" but she doesn't wait for Bellatrix to answer, making herself right at home in the once quiet compartment as soon as the question slips from her pink lips "Thanks, I'm Alice Fortescue, by the way."

Bellatrix stares at her, frowning, the Fortescues are Blood-Traitors but Bellatrix can't just ask her to leave, she's already settled in, that would be disrespectful — Blood-Traitor or not. Now, if Vega was here, Alice would have been kicked out and sporting a black eye by now but Bellatrix is nowhere near as violent as Vega. Swallowing thickly, Bellatrix turns her attention to the passing green fields, just ignore her, just ignore her, just ignore her. If her father finds out that she let a Blood-Traitor into her compartment, she shudders at the thought, it'd be so bad, really bad, and painful too. And if Vega comes looking for her and see her sitting with Little Loud-Mouth Fortescue, she'll be even worse off because Vega will blow the whole thing out of proportion.

Alice Fortescue, Bellatrix learns rather quickly, is not someone who can be ignored. She keeps talking and she keeps talking loudly "You don't talk very much, do you? That's alright, I can talk enough for the both of us! My folks say I've got a motor-mouth but I just have lots to talk about, anyway talking is how you make friends and I plan to make lots of friends this year, I've never really had a friend before? Have you?"

Bellatrix spares a glance at Alice to see that she had pulled a fat, fluffy white bunny out of a cage and a little 'awe' escapes Bellatrix's lips then she quickly looks away; but, unfortunately, Alice had heard her. Smiling, Alice tells Bellatrix: "This is Flower, he likes to be pet, do you want to pet him?"

Bellatrix bites her lip, she wants to pet the bunny so badly, she loves animals and had always wanted animal of her own but her parents would never allow her or her younger sisters one. They didn't even get Vega one and they usually get Vega whatever she wants and she had wanted a pet Kneazle so badly. Her only exposure to animals is through Adelpha Carrow, her best friend, who has a cat of her own, an orange tabby she named Cinnamon. Giving in to temptation, Bellatrix reaches out to pet the big bunny only for Alice to pull it away at the last second, declaring "You've got to tell me your name first!"

Bellatrix scowls and rolls her eyes and thinks that it's a wonder that those kids didn't kick Alice out of their compartment sooner, she is bloody annoying. But, Bellatrix really wants to pet that bunny, so she gives in again and grumbles "Bellatrix. My name is Bellatrix Black."

Alice grins victorious and true to her word, she lets Bellatrix pet her bunny. Unfortunately, Alice sees this as an invitation to start yet another conversation with her. But, she decides not to complain nor stop it because Alice shoves her bunny into Bellatrix's arms, allowing her to hold the bunny like she holds her stuffed bear that she missed already. Vega told her not to bring it because the other kids would laugh at her and besides, they were big girls now, they didn't need stuffed animals to protect them now. Alice's bunny, Flower, was much softer than her stuffed bear ( his name is marmalade but no one knows that because it's weird to name your stuffed animals, thats what Vega says ) and way more comforting to hold; Bellatrix wishes her parents had let her get a bunny.

Alice rambles on and on about many different things, Bellatrix has no idea what she's going on about and perhaps that's because Bellatrix isn't paying attention in the slightest. But, she's got a feeling that even if she was paying attention, she still wouldn't have a clue, Alice talks so quickly it's hard to distinguish what she's saying, not that Bellatrix would care too.

Although, Alice is that bad for a Blood-Traitor that. She's right annoying but she's not trying to shove Muggle Rights hogwash down Bellatrix's throat, which is what Bellatrix's parents told her Blood-Traitors do. At that thought, Bellatrix pinches her thigh, once, twice, three times because she shouldn't think like that, she shouldn't tolerate Blood-Traitors — oh, if father heard! Bellatrix shudders, she wonders if he still has access to her thoughts are or they far enough away now?

There's a crinkling sound of a wrapper and suddenly Alice is shoving an abnormally large cookie under Bellatrix's nose "Wanna cookie? My grandpa made them! They're really big but that's because ice cream is his specialty, he tends to make the cookies as big as the scoops he gives the kids but I'm not complaining!"

"Ice cream scoops?" Bellatrix says, thick brows furrowing in confusion, she thought ice cream on went on cones. She wouldn't know much about ice cream as she's never hand any but she has seen other people with ice cream and they always have it on cones.

Alice nods a little too enthusiastically, thrilled that Bellatrix is finally speaking with her "Yep, he's Florean Fortescue! Hey, what's your favourite type of ice cream, y'know my grandpa says that you can tell a lot about a person by their favourite type of ice cream."

Bellatrix shrugs, keeping her eyes on her feet, there's a spot of mud on her little black boots, her mother would say she looked filthy for it if she could see them. "I've never had ice cream."

Alice looks astonished and she gasps "Never?!"

Bellatrix shakes her head, looking up slightly to stare at the cookie in Alice's hand "My parents don't like us having too many sweets . . . My Auntie Wally sneaks us cookies and little chocolate when my parents aren't looking. I tried to get her to take me to that ice cream place but father caught us."

She frowns, he had been so angry, it hurt to sit for days and she remembers Vega watching and giggling as she cried and cried and father hit her again and again and again. It wasn't the worst punishment he's ever given her and that was thanks to Auntie Wally and Uncle Orion but it was the most humiliating because he had done it in front of Andromeda and Narcissa.

"That's sad," Alice says with a pout, "Here, you definitely need this cookie now!"

"Why?" Bellatrix says, still frowning and not taking the abnormally large cookie.

"'Cause, you poor soul, you've been d — d — deprived of sugar way too long and as your friend I need to help fix that!" Alice declares boldly.

"Friend? Who says I'm your friend?!" Bellatrix says loudly. Alice is a Blood-Traitor, she would never! Mother and father would disown her and she doesn't want to be disowned!

"Well, you've stuck with me this long, haven't you?" Alice says slowly, "Or is that just your Hufflepuff loyalty?"

Bellatrix's nostrils flare and she narrows her icy eyes at Alice "I'm not a Hufflepuff anything! If anyone's a stupid Hufflepuff it's you — going 'round and shoving cookies in strangers' faces!"

Alice stares at Bellatrix with wide brown eyes but she's not at all phased by Bellatrix's outburst "Nah, I'm not a Hufflepuff, I'm gonna be a Gryffindor like my dad. My mum's a Hufflepuff although the Sorting Hat did consider Slytherin for her, she chose Hufflepuff. Anyway, Bella, do you want the cookie or not?"

"Yes!" Bellatrix snaps, staring intensely at Alice, she really did want that cookie.

"Then take the cookie."

"I will!"

There's a beat in which Bellatrix and Alice stare intensely at each other, Alice grinning like a fool and Bellatrix glaring daggers. And then, Bellatrix snatches the cookie from Alice's grasp and begins to aggressively nibble on it. There's another beat and then Bellatrix looks Alice dead in the eye and angrily says "Thank you."

Once again, Alice grins victorious and she replies "Don't mention it, friend."

Bellatrix cringes but she doesn't deny it this time, maybe it's because she's got a mouthful of cookie or maybe it's because part of her wouldn't mind being Alice's friend? She isn't that bad for a Blood-Traitor, she's not Muggle-obsessed, maybe it could work and maybe her parents wouldn't be that mad? Or maybe they could be friends and no one would have to know? They're definitely not getting into the same house, there's no way Alice would make it into Slytherin, she's not good enough — they'd chew her up and spit her out. Vega would be beside herself with amusement tormenting Alice everyday if by some unfortunate event Alice did end up in Slytherin. And if they don't end up in the same house that means Alice won't be able to talk her ear off everyday and have other people think that they're friends, yes, Bellatrix thinks, they could be secret friends.

Having Alice as a friend wouldn't that bad, in some ways Alice Fortescue is like Adelpha Carrow and Adelpha is a great friend to Bellatrix. Only Alice is louder and way more annoying, and her family is someone Bellatrix's and even the Carrow's would rather be caught dead than be seen with them but, still, Alice and Adelpha radiated the same energy — a warm energy that is bright and both calming and exciting at the same time. Alice and Adelpha are bright yellow spots in Bellatrix's black and white world. And perhaps, Bellatrix thinks, the three of them can be friends. Secret friends, of course, because neither Bellatrix or Adelpha can be seen together in public with the likes of Alice Fortescue.

"Alright, I won't." Bellatrix says hesitantly, "But something tells me you will."

At this, Alice laughs, a loud and cheerful laugh that makes Bellatrix all warm and tingly, and she doesn't find herself immediately regretting her decision to let this Blood-Traitor in even though there's a rather good chance that her decision could end very badly for her — if mother, father, or Vega find out, she shudders at that thought because she knows she'd probably be cold in a grave before she could even repent and not even the warm yellow light that Alice Fortescue radiates could protect her from her family's dark, grayscale wrath.