Imagine Bellatrix being strangely fascinated by you, a muggle
She didn’t know what it was about you. After all, you were just a muggle. Meaningless, insignificant, not fit to mix with proud witches such as herself. Hell, even a house elf had more right to be in her presence than you did. And yet… No, she banished the thought away. There was nothing special or intriguing about you at all. You were filth, with no right to plague her mind.
It was during a begrugding trip through muggle London - vile, but necessary - that she had first seen you. You were walking down the street, same as any other, and disappeared into a bookstore. Nothing strange or extraordinary, just a girl on her way to buy something to read. So why did she find herself turning her head, craning her neck to get a better look at you? She realized with annoyance that she had even stopped walking to get a longer look at you. She tore her eyes away with a scowl, continuing on about her business, but you lingered on her mind. The more she tried not to think about you, the more she found you popping up in her head, like a particularly stubborn weed. Oh, how infuriating it was to be so enraptured by a mere muggle. She nearly tore her hair out trying to figure out what was so different about you. It didn’t help that she kept seeing you everywhere, in what she told herself was only a growing collection of coincidences. Certainly not intentional, unnecessary visits through muggle London. It was simply the easiest way to get to The Leaky Cauldron, which was conveniently - inconveniently, she corrected herself - located quite close to the bookstore you visited so often.
You were taking up far too much space in her mind for her to be comfortable with. Part of her wondered if you were really a muggle at all. Perhaps you were some mischievous witch that had cast a spell on her. No, she was smart enough to know that wasn’t the case. She realized the only way to rid herself of you would be to confront you. ‘I’ll have to talk with her,’ she thought to herself, 'and then I’ll see that she’s just as bland and dimwitted as any other muggle.’
Armed with this logic, she strode into the bookstore the next day. She didn’t see you immediately, and cursed under her breath. Of course you would make this take longer than it should. She stomped up and down the aisles searching for you. Anyone that cast a funny look got a withering glare for it. She finally found you at the back, sitting cross legged on the floor of the fantasy section, concealed by the tall bookshelves on either side of you. You didn’t notice her at first, completely engulfed in the world you were reading. The title, partially concealed by your fingers, was not one Bellatrix recognized. The Black family was never allowed to have muggle books in the house, and as an adult she’d never bothered. She assumed they were filled with useless, uninteresting things, like how to cook without a wand. Yet watching you, so absorbed in the pages, her assumption wavered the tiniest bit. She didn’t realize it yet, but that waver was like a ripple in the ocean. The smallest change to cause a bigger chain reaction.
Tired of being ignored, she decided to speak.
“What are you doing?” She demanded. She delighted in the way you jumped a bit, startled, and the light pink in your cheeks as you looked her up and down. You were surprised by her bossy tone, and it took you a moment to answer.
“Um, reading?” You flashed a confused smile, fiddling with the book in your hand. Now it was Bellatrix’s turn to be flustered, although she didn’t show it. How could she have allowed herself to ask such a stupid question?
“Aren’t you supposed to buy them before you read them? It’s not a library, you know.” She recovered, crossing her arms over her chest.
You winced, inhaling through your teeth. “Ah yea, you got me. Reading in a bookstore. How devious.” You smiled as you rose to your feet, shelving the book. “You know, you shouldn’t hang out with the likes of me, criminal as I am. Bad influence.”
She looked you up and down and sniffed. “I’ve had worse company.”
You hummed in response. Then you squinted your eyes in recognition. “Hey, I know you, actually.”
“Do you?” She asked, haughty tone concealing the tension she felt. How could you possibly know her?
“Oh I mean.. Not, you know, "know you” know you. “ You said, making air quotes with your hands. "I’ve seen you around a lot though. You kinda stick out in a crowd.” Your eyes lingered on her wild mane of jet black hair, and equally dark outfit.
She was about to respond when there was suddenly a terrible ringing noise. She was reaching for her wand when you pulled a strange rectangular box out of your pocket. It seemed to be the source of the ringing, and after you messed with it for a moment, it fell silent.
“What is that wretched thing?” She questioned, eyeing it suspiciously. Her wand was clasped tightly in her hand, concealed by her dress. She was beginning to learn that muggles, or at least this one specifically, could be a bit surprising.
You looked at your strange magic box, then back up at her.
“I know it’s not the newest phone around, but I wouldn’t call it wretched.” You laughed. “I have to go.” You pocketed the phone, giving her a quick once over. “I’ll be here the same time tomorrow if you want to go out for coffee or something.”
“Coffee? With you?” She told herself that she’d never want to spend another second here, surrounded by filthy muggles.
You shrugged. “Why not?”
Then you just walked away, leaving her alone in the aisle. She gaped at the audacity. How dare you, just leaving like that without being properly dismissed. Muggles were so rude, no sense of culture. Just mowing through their lives complaining about their problems they wish they could magic away. And there really wasn’t anything special about you at all. What a waste of time. She glanced at the book you had been reading, tucked neatly away on the shelf, and traced her fingers over the spine for a moment. Then she jerked her hand away, as if it had burnt her, and turned and stormed out.
And yet, the next day, she found herself striding towards the bookstore once again.