DISCLAIMER: The characters in this story and the world they inhabit are in no way the property of myself or anyone I have ever met. That said, I am using them for my own purposes but not profiting from them in the least; not mine, no money, no permission, no shirt, no shoes, no problems. K?

A/N: this piece is a result of the August/September writing contest at the HP Lexicon forum; which you all should check out if you love Potter canon. It is along ht elines of my piece "All is Calm, All is Bright" in that it's all happy at the beginning and sucks beyond the telling of it at the end. You've been warned

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NOVEMBER 14, 1980

"Ben, I'm going to be late," Elise Adele insisted as she again tried to break free of her fiancé's grasp. They stood near the doorway to Duchess Weft's gown boutique in CordiAlley and he seemed to be quite averse to letting go of her.

"You're the bride," he reminded her. "They can't start without you." He pulled her toward himself again. "Besides," he added, "there's still a little bit of your face I haven't kissed yet."

"My face will still be there after my appointment," she assured him, stepping away. "And the fact that they can't start without me is hardly the point." She took another step away from him and crossed her arms over her chest. "There are people waiting for me. It was your idea that I bring a cadre along in the first place; now do you really insist that I keep them waiting?"

"It isn't a cadre, Elise," he said to her, shaking his head.

"What do you call it then?" She raised her eyebrows and waited for him to answer.

"A…" Ben considered his words for a moment. "A group of concerned individuals," he finally decided upon.

"It's a detachment," she argued, shaking her own head in time with his. "Every woman in the blasted Order of the blasted Phoenix is waiting inside of that shop to guard me while I try on my wedding gown."

"Elise," Ben sighed, stepping closer to her and placing his hands on her shoulders. "I'm supposed to be in hiding, remember?" he asked her. "I've been marked for death by You-Know-Who and I can't fathom what I'd do if anything happened to you."

"Nothing is going to happen to me," she assured him. "I'm not involved in this conflict," she reminded her fiancé, "and I doubt seriously that there's going to be a Death Eater attack in a posh shopping district in the middle of the afternoon."

"Elise," he sighed. He was sure he wasn't going to win this. "Please," he implored her. "Please just forget that they're in there for your protection and remember that they're our friends and that they're just as excited to see your dress as they are worried about your safety?"

"Two weeks," Elise sighed, still shaking her head. "Two weeks and then we're married and this madness stops."

"This madness, as you call it, is a war," he reminded her. "It doesn't stop once we're married."

"Bah," Elise spat. "The madness is that you're supposed to be on the run; hiding somewhere, but instead you're here keeping me from an appointment. These things will stop once we're married since I'll have no more appointments to keep; I can run and hide with you."

"Where can you run to escape from yourself?" Ben asked rhetorically. "It's me they're after, and they're going to keep looking until they find me. Best to just keep moving and try to live as normally as possible. Besides," he added, "what good am I to the Order cowering in some dive? I can still fight," he contended.

"I just think we're going about this wrong, is all," she told him.

"Maybe it's not as serious as I've made it out to be," he lied. Ben knew just what he was up against, and he knew what his bride was going to have to deal with once they were married. But he really didn't want to spoil her afternoon or to cause her to dwell on a war she wanted no part in.

"I'm sure that it's just as serious as you've made it out to be," she allowed. "How could I think otherwise after what happened to the McKinnons last month? But I'd rather forget about it for the hour it's going to take to enjoy my final dress fitting." She looked at him with wide, hopeful eyes.

"Be careful," he said to her. "But have a good time." Ben leaned forward and kissed her cheek before gesturing for her to go ahead into the shop. Elise sighed as she turned from her fiancé and went the few feet to the front door of the boutique.

For all its opulence; Duchess Weft's was a small shop. The lobby was barely fifteen feet wide, and was crammed full of lavish brocade furniture intermingled with racks of dress samples, mannequins sporting gowns in various degrees of completion, and bolts upon bolts of fabric. Swatches and trimmings, beads and embellishments of all colors were swathed against the gold and shimmering wallpaper. There was a hodgepodge of rugs on the floor, several of which denoted a clear path through a doorway into the rear of the shop where the fitting and sewing rooms were housed.

The shop was known mainly to the very upper-crust and catered to a more exclusive clientele than Elise was really qualified to join. However, so much of the wedding had to be pared down in light of the war that she was just able to afford a custom gown from Duchess Weft's. She'd been in thrice already to meet with the seamstress and try on her gown as it was being constructed; she was thrilled at the prospect of bringing her dress home today. It was the nicest thing she'd ever owned.

"Hello there, Miss Adele!" Lorraine Lacy, the proprietor of Duchess Weft's greeted Elise as she came through the door.

"Good afternoon," a smiling Elise returned her greeting.

"You've amassed quite an audience," Lorraine commented, taking Elise by the elbow and walking her further into the shop. Elise nodded as she looked around the store, frowning at the assembled women.

She hadn't been exaggerating when she'd contended that every woman in the Order would be present to see her gown fitted for the final time. Lily Potter, Alice Longbottom, Dorcas Meadowes, and Emmeline Vance were standing in what was clearly a defensive grid around the shop; their watchful eyes on any possible means of entry or exit (despite the room being so filled with furniture and textiles as to make ambush near impossible). Elise's invited guests looked more relaxed; they were sitting together on the longest sofa facing a large mirror and sipping champagne from crystal flutes. Elise waved at her future sister-in-law Marjorie and the mothers of the flower girl and ring bearer: Andromeda Tonks and Molly Weasley. Molly was an Order member as well, but Elise didn't so much mind her around, as the Weasleys were old friends of her mother's and nine-year-old Bill would be serving in the wedding.

Bill was sitting quietly on the floor, showing the six-year-old flower girl, Nymphadora, his famous wizard card collection. Molly and Andromeda rose from their seats to greet the bride as she entered. Elise gladly hugged her friends and tried her best to do as her fiancé asked, putting the danger and the annoyance out of her mind.

"We thought Benjy might've changed his mind about letting you come," Molly shared with Elise as she drew the girl to a seat on the sofa.

"I'd have pummeled him for it," Andromeda offered. Elise aloud at that.

"Oh no," she told them. "He went to way too much trouble inviting every female he knew to come along to even consider stopping this day from happening." The other women chuckled; it was the truth. "Nymphadora," Elise addressed to the crayon-yellow haired girl on the floor. The child looked up, seemingly annoyed at having been interrupted in her attempts to change her hair to match every wizard on the cards Bill showed her. "Are you excited to try on your dress today, too?" Elise asked. Nymphadora shook her head.

"I hate dresses," she asserted. "I don't want to wear one!"

"Dora…" her mother chided. The child frowned and huffed, but quieted her tirade. "We've made a deal," Andromeda explained to Elise.

"Oh?" Elise was curious to hear this. Andromeda nodded.

"If she promises to keep her hair and face looking as though they ought to during the wedding, then she's only got to wear the dress that one day." Elise nodded. Having a six-year-old metamorphmagus in your wedding party was enough to give any bride pause; so the idea that Nymphadora had been amiable to such a deal was a pleasing enough thought.

"I'm alright with that," Elise told the others. Marjorie, who had remained seated at the far end of the sofa, chuckled at her future sister-in-law's comment.

"Figured you would be," Andromeda said to her. "Should we get your dress on, then?" she asked. Elise looked to her and smiled, nodding her head enthusiastically. This was what she'd come for, after all.

"Help me with it?" Elise asked Andromeda. Both ladies stood from their seats and headed toward the back of the store, past a row of free standing ball gowns and into the fitting rooms. "Wait 'til you see, An," Elise said to the older woman as they rounded a large rack of fabric bolts and passed into the fitting room area. "It's amazing."

"Of course it is," Andromeda agreed with her. "As it should be," she qualified. "It's your wedding gown." Elise smiled. She was glad that An was here with her. Andromeda's husband, Ted, had been friends with the groom-to-be since Hogwarts and the Tonks' had been instrumental in keeping Elise and Ben sane during the whole wedding planning process.

"There it is," Elise declared, gesturing to a white silk and organza gown hanging in mid air directly in front of a curtained-off fitting room. Andromeda smiled at her.

"It's perfect," she said.

"I like to think so," Elise agreed.

"Let's get it on you, then," Andromeda suggested. Elise nodded and took hold of the suspended garment. It wilted into her hands immediately and she carried it the few steps through the curtain into the fitting room.

"I'm going to need you to do it up for me," Elise called to Andromeda from behind the curtain.

"At your service," An called back. It was less than a moment before Elise appeared again. She was holding the bodice of her gown up by the waist and smiling from ear to ear. She turned her back to Andromeda and gestured to the rear lacing. There was a white ribbon laced up the back of the gown, and a pair of loops at the top.

"You have to tighten the lacing so it stays on," Elise explained. "And then thread the ribbons through the loops at the top. It'll lace itself to the front," she explained, pointing out a series of small loops at the top of the bodice in front. Andromeda pulled at the ribbons in back until the dress fit the young girl impeccably. The ribbons then escaped Andromeda's hands and laced themselves over and over again through the large loops at the back and the series of small loops in the front. The ribbons created a perfect V-neck and cap sleeves and tied themselves neatly at the nape of Elise's neck.

"Elise," Andromeda sighed, spinning the girl around so that she could see the whole dress. "It's perfect. It's amazing. Benjy won't be able to contain himself when he sees you in this." Elise lowered her eyes and sighed.

"Do you think?" Elise asked her. She shook her head slowly and put her hands over her face.

"Sweetie, what's wrong?" Andromeda asked, turning Elise so that she could look her in the eye.

"Benjamin," Elise answered with a shrug.

"You're worried about him," An surmised. It had become an open secret that Elise's intended had been marked for death by Lord Voldemort just days ago, and Andromeda could only guess at the strain this must be putting on the young bride-to-be.

"Yes," Elise agreed, "but that's not it," she added, sinking into a nearby chair. "I don't think he even sees me," she confided.

"What do mean by that?" Andromeda asked, kneeling in front of Elise.

"I mean…" Elise shook her head and frowned. "I mean he doesn't seem…" She leaned forward. "Interested in me anymore," she finished, candidly.

"In the…er…" Andromeda was trying to find a way to put this delicately; "bedroom?" she finally asked. Elise nodded.

"Yeah," she confirmed quietly. "Used to he couldn't keep his hands off of me; but now it's like pulling teeth to get him to put his hands on me. He'll kiss me… but then he's done. And I'm not sure that any dress, no matter how wonderful, is going to fix that."

"Oh sugar," Andromeda said to her, standing back up and shaking her head. "There's nothing to worry about. I promise."

"There's not?" Elise asked, still not standing from her chair.

"No," An assured her. "Honestly, my little sister had the same problem just before she got married."

"I thought you didn't speak to your sisters?" Elise was a little bit confused. She knew that Andromeda and Ted had gotten married against An's parents' wishes and that she'd been cut off from her family ever since. Other than passing mentions from the society page, Elise had scarcely heard Andromeda mention either of her sisters.

"I don't," An confirmed. "And Bellatrix I still have exactly no use for. But Cissy's husband and I were friends in school and we kept in touch until they were married, which made our writing to each other wholly inconvenient. He wrote me while they were engaged that she was dreadfully concerned that he wasn't attracted to her; that he was only marrying her for her name and her status. But that couldn't have been farther from the truth. I know because I was the first person he told that he was interested in her and the two of us used to conspire to get her to notice him. He was enthralled with her, and had been for years, but he wouldn't touch her."

"So…" Elise stood and walked toward the mirror on the opposite end of the room. "So you don't think it's me?" she asked. Andromeda shook her head, arranging the train on Elise's dress so that she could see the ornate embroidery in the mirror.

"No, sweetie, it's not you," she explained. "It's men. Once they're engaged: what used to be jolly fun turns into some sacred rite. It's like they're afraid to sully their bride with such things; not that they ever paused from 'sullying' before they got engaged. With Cissy it was worse because Lucius had thought ahead and kept his hands to himself from the beginning; but I promise it happens all the time."

"Didn't happen to you," Elise surmised. Andromeda shrugged.

"I was never engaged," she reminded her friend. Elise nodded.

"That's right," she remembered. "You eloped. I'm beginning to see the beauty in that," she added. Andromeda chuckled and drew her wand. She twirled the lithe shaft through the air, tying Elise's hair up onto the top of her head as she did.

"Nonsense," An countered, "and it's only two more weeks."

"So how did your sister get over it?" Elise asked, turning in the mirror to see her hairstyle and the back of her dress over her shoulder.

"She got married," Andromeda answered. "Once you're married it's no longer dirty. You'll be fine."

"I'm just going to have to trust you on this, aren't I?" Elise asked, again facing the mirror and finally allowing herself to smile at her reflection.

"You are," Andromeda said to her. "You look amazing," she added, regarding Elise's reflection.

"I'm getting married!" Elise squealed, balling her hands into fists as her smile widened. There was a sudden clatter from the front of the shop; the combined sounds of ripping fabric, breaking glass, and tumbling mannequins met the girls' ears along with a scream from Lorraine the shopkeeper.

"NO WANDS IN MY SHOP!" she hollered.

"What the…?" Elise turned quickly and took a step toward the hallway leading back into the lobby. She stumbled over the hem of her gown, catching herself on the train that had been laid out behind her. "Damn," she swore.

"I'll go look," Andromeda offered. Elise nodded as her friend went through the archway and peeked her head out to see the ruckus in the lobby. Andromeda shut the curtain quickly and slammed herself flush against the wall. Her eyes were wide as she looked at Elise.

"What is it?" she asked. "What's going on?" Andromeda shook her head and took a careful and quiet step back toward Elise.

"Speak of the devil…" she whispered. "And the devil appears." Elise shook her head; she had no idea what Andromeda was talking about. She tiptoed toward the curtain and pulled it aside just enough to get a decent view of the lobby.

All of the Order members, Molly Weasley included, had their wands drawn on a dark-haired woman who hadn't come but a few feet into the shop. Molly was standing in such a way as to block any view of the children on the floor from the woman in the doorway and Marjorie had ducked behind her to further shield the youngsters. The unknown woman had her wand drawn as well, but Elise wasn't sure just what she thought she was doing; thinking that she might take on so many alone. Lorraine was standing between the dark woman and the majority of the wands that were trained on her, trying her level best to get everyone to stand down.

"There will be no wands drawn in my shop!" the shopkeeper insisted, looking sternly at the group of women.

"Get this lot to put theirs away and I'll gladly pocket mine," the woman growled, scowling at the others in the room. Elise turned her head toward Andromeda and shrugged. She had no idea what was going on. Andromeda looked like she was about to be sick.

"My sister," she whispered. "Bellatrix." Elise felt her eyes get wide. She peered through the curtain again, trying her best not to open it far enough to be seen by anyone in the front of the store. Bellatrix Lestrange was a known Death Eater; and Elise had never seen a Death Eater before to her knowledge.

The women had lowered their wands, but none were put away. Lorraine was stepping into the store with her hand Bellatrix's arm. "Now, Mrs. Lestrange," she said, trying obviously to calm everyone down. "You said you're here for your sister?" Bellatrix snarled and yanked her arm back from the shopkeeper.

"Cissy asked me to pick up her gown," Bellatrix spat. "So,where is it?"

"Well," Lorraine sighed, wringing her hands. "I wish that Mrs. Malfoy had given me some warning that you'd be in to get her dress today…"

"She's at home with an infant and a head cold," Bellatrix informed her. "And it's her birthday and she wants her bloody dress. It was supposed to be ready today."

"It is," Lorraine allowed, "it is, but it still needs pressing. And, as you can see, I've got a wedding party in here at the moment." Bellatrix snarled and looked around the room.

"I had wondered what such riffraff was doing in this part of town," she commented.

"I can have Mrs. Malfoy's gown ready for you in an hour," Lorraine offered. "Or I can have it delivered to her at home later in the day." It was clear to all that she had intended that comment to rid her shop of Bellatrix Lestrange until Elise and her minders were well out of sight. Bellatrix clenched her jaw and shook her head.

"Did you not hear me say that she's ill?" Bellatrix snapped. "The last thing she needs is some shop girl calling or wrinkles in her new dress from having it boxed up."

"Well…" Lorraine was trying to get a word in, but Bellatrix was having none of it.

"And I know you say you can charm it against wrinkles, but the all of our dress robes for the Rosiers' damnable Samhain feast arrived in such deplorable condition that the elves spent hours banging the wrinkles out of them."

"I apologize Mrs. Lestrange," Lorraine said to her, trying hard to keep the woman's ire down as best as possible.

"Don't apologize," Bellatrix insisted, turning on her heel back toward the front door. "Just have it ready in an hour. I'll be back." Bellatrix stormed from the store and back out into CordiAlley. She had an hour to kill. She hated that.

Bellatrix was already in a foul mood; having been sent on her sister's errand. Damn that brat of Cissy's for getting sick. She cursed under her breath and turned the corner into the alley that led behind Duchess Weft's. There was supposedly a pub hidden back here somewhere.

And suddenly Bellatrix was in a much better mood.

She instantly recognized the young man standing atop a pile of crates and trying to peer through a tiny window into the shop. "Ickle Hufflepuff," Bella sang, causing the man to teeter on the crates and fall gracelessly to the ground. He was making a whining noise and trying his best to stand up. "Immobilus!" Bella called, drawing her wand down on him. "Crucio!" She added, with a singsong quality to her voice that made Benjy's blood run cold.

Bella circled him slowly, watching with glee as he became more and more terrified by the instant. "Well, well, well," Bella sang, chuckling under her breath as she bent down over him. "Benjy Fenwick," she greeted him by name. "I know someone who's been looking for you." Bellatrix laughed out loud as she took a step away and trained her wand upon him again. "Sectumsempra!" she called.

The spell tore a vertical gash deep through Benjy's torso, so deep that spurts of blood burst from his chest with every heartbeat. "Awww," Bellatrix feigned compassion. "Did ickle Hufflepuff Benjy get eviscerated?" she asked in baby-talk. "Accio!" she called, with her wand pointed into his wound. Pieces of his intestine answered her incantation and flew into her hand, flinging bits of blood and tissue as they went. Bellatrix laughed wickedly and tossed the organ into the air, calling "Incendio!" as she did.

The still-conscious Benjy watched in horror as his innards fell in a flaming heap back to earth. "Incendio!" Bellatrix called again, this time pointing her wand at Benjy's legs. He wailed in pain as his already broken body caught fire. "Sectumsempra!" She called again, this time creating a wound that separated his lower half from the rest of him. His lower extremities were still on fire, and his face was turning white as he watched.

"That was your little wedding party in there, wasn't it?" Bella surmised, poking her wand through the air; an act which caused the two halves of Benjy to separate with every jab. "Confringio!" Bella called out, causing the lower half of her quarry to explode into dozens of fiery pieces, landing all over the alleyway.

Benjy was barely hanging on to consciousness as Bella vanished the pool of blood from the stones so as to not soil her robes or shoes. "Don't you know," Bella said to him, lifting what was left of him off the ground, "that the groom should never try to see the bride in her dress before the wedding?" She shook her head and bounced her quarry up and down above her head. "It's bad luck," she finished matter-of-factly. "Confringio!" She hollered again, blasting apart what was left of Benjy Fenwick.

Bella sighed and shook her head. She dusted off her robes and sneered at the bits of humanity that lay all around her; stuck to the walls and the crates and the paving stones. There was a noise behind her and she turned her head to see the crowd of women that had just been in Duchess Weft's passing down CordiAlley.

"Come on then, Elise," one of the women said to her. "Let's go find what's become of the groom."

Bellatrix nodded her head. She wished she could be there to see that.

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Told you it was a tragedy. Please let me know you were here... even flames will keep me warm. I live for reviews; ask anyone who knows me... :)

-MQ