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It began with a spell. A bright white light shooting from her wand, turning green as it made contact with her abdomen. Fuck.
They hadn’t planned it, of course they hadn’t, they were 45, for Circe’s sake.
It wasn’t like they didn’t want a baby, it just didn’t happen for them, and they were at an age where they thought it couldn’t happen. Foolish.
What followed was nine months of feeling horribly ill - between dreadful morning sickness, exhaustion, and swollen joints, Bellatrix barely had any time to enjoy pregnancy. Narcissa had loved every minute of her pregnancy, and Andromeda had been indifferent, so Bellatrix naively assumed she’d be fine too. How wrong she was.
Rodolphus, bless his heart, did his best. He held her hair back when she vomited, massaged her aching feet, and apologised profusely each time she berated him for getting her in this position in the first place.
Finally, Delphini Black Lestrange made her arrival early in the morning at the beginning of March. She was beautiful, with chubby little cheeks, and a thick head of jet black hair (which explained the heartburn her mother had dealt with). In her parents’ eyes, she was the perfect little baby, small and placid, and so warm - the most beautiful newborn they’d ever seen.
It turned out that for all the trouble she gave Bellatrix during her pregnancy, Delphi was an easy baby. Very sleepy, and most content on her mother’s chest, her head resting just above her heart as she napped. She ate well, and slept well, and developed right on time. Bellatrix was so proud - Delphi was the best baby, and being able to brag to her friends and sisters about her achievements was the icing on the cake. She knew Draco had been a fussy baby, and Nymphadora had always detested nap time, so telling her sisters she wasn’t suffering the same problems made her incredibly smug.
She was fiercely protective of her daughter, only trusting herself and Rodolphus to care for her properly. She barely spent a few hours away from her, and even then, she worried constantly. When guests visited and held her, Bellatrix watched them like a hawk, ready to swoop in and scoop Delphi from their arms at the first slight whine from her daughter.
She threw herself into motherhood - it became her life. Other pureblood ladies had nannies and wet nurses, but Bellatrix wanted neither.
Of course, the tranquility wasn’t to last.
Delphi learned to walk and talk, and Bellatrix quickly realised why most witches had their babies young. In the blink of an eye, her daughter would be across the room, attempting to climb up furniture, putting Merlin knows what into her mouth. It was exhausting.
But she also spoke, which made up for all the mischief she found herself in. Hearing Delphi call her mama for the first time made Bellatrix cry, and Delphi quickly learned that it was the easiest way to make mama happy. All day she would coo, mama, mama, mama, as she played.
She loved papa too - but papa had to work, so she would excitedly wait for him each evening, ready to tell him everything she’d got up to with mama in her sweet little babble.
Even as a toddler, Delphi was her mother’s double - with her wild curls and dark eyes, even her grin matched Bellatrix’s. Rodolphus couldn’t believe how similar the girls were. She was similar to her mother in other ways too. The pair of them had Rodolphus wrapped around their little fingers - he adored them both, would do anything to make them happy. He loved nothing more than coming home from a long day of work to hear them laughing together, and to see their eyes light up as he stood in the doorway, both of his girls pleased to see him. Each night, Delphi would barrel into him to be scooped up, planting a sweet kiss on his cheek. Bellatrix would join them, kissing his other cheek softly, admiring her perfect little family.
For years, it was the same. Rodolphus worked, Bellatrix and Delphi played. Then, the fateful day came. On Delphi’s 11th birthday, she received her Hogwarts letter.
It wasn’t that Bellatrix was upset - of course she wanted her daughter to attend school and learn magic (and hopefully outshine the other students, just as she had) - but it meant their years together would come to an end. She didn’t know what she’d do with herself, she’d been a mother for so long. Of course, Delphi was delighted to receive her letter, and spent most of her birthday quizzing her parents on what Hogwarts was like.
July arrived, and Bellatrix readied herself for the next day that she’d dreaded - buying Delphi’s school supplies. Of course, she’d buy nothing but the best for her daughter, only the finest cauldron would do, and an abundance of quills. An owl, too, so they could write to one another. Bellatrix had wanted to buy her the elegant snowy owl, very regal, but Delphi set her heart on a scrawny little barn owl. It certainly wasn’t up to her standards, but it was sweet, and Delphi seemed in love with the little thing, and in eleven years, she was yet to learn how to say no to her.
September 1st followed, and Delphi crossed onto platform 9 3/4, with her parents behind her, papa pushing the trolley of her luggage, and mama holding onto the owl she’d grown to love.
The memories came rushing back to Bellatrix, of her own years at Hogwarts; how much fun she’d had. It was where she’d first met Rodolphus, where they’d fell in love. She supposed she wanted those experiences for her daughter, as hard as it would be to see her leave.
After marvelling at the Hogwarts express for a few minutes, Delphi ran back to her parents, pulling both of them into a hug. Bellatrix reminded her to be good, to have fun, and most importantly to write often, and finally let her go, fighting her tears as she watched Delphi board the train.
‘It’s only three months until the holidays,’ Rodolphus reminded her, kissing her temple sweetly. Bellatrix nodded.
The first term went so slowly, but eventually, it was time to bring Delphi home for the winter holidays. Bellatrix was so excited; she’d stocked the house with her favourite snacks, and even decorated. Delphi had kept her promise and wrote twice a week - it wasn’t just Bellatrix struggling to adjust to the change. In fact, once they returned from King’s Cross, Delphi insisted on sitting beside her mother, telling her all about her classes, her teachers, and the journey home.
Bellatrix always made summers special. Full of their favourite games, and shopping for school supplies (and pretty new robes). Rodolphus made sure to take time off work to spend with his girls, and they visited beautiful cities, all over Europe, visiting ancient wizarding communities.
When Delphi was old enough, she spent her Hogsmeade trips with her parents, who would travel out to meet her. They bought her plenty of sweets, enough to keep her stocked until the next trip, and sipped butterbeers together.
She may not have been able to spend all her time with her daughter now that she was older, but Bellatrix was determined to make the time they did have special.
Seven years passed quicker than Bellatrix had imagined, and soon, Delphi was back home. Her parents had enough money for her to not need a job - they’d made sure of it - but Delphi had a penchant for charms, and she found herself working part time for the Weasley twins, helping to create their products.
Bellatrix stood before her daughter, fixing the veil in her hair tenderly. As she did, memories of their life together came rushing back to her. She took a step back, admiring her.
‘You look so beautiful,’ she whispered.
Delphi smiled. Mother and daughter faced each other, tears welling in both of their eyes.
‘Now, just because you’ll be living in your new house, that doesn’t mean you can’t visit me.’ Bellatrix reminded her. It was hard to think that their years of living together were coming to an end, but she couldn’t have been prouder of her daughter, and the life she’d built for herself.