Bellatrix had to watch that order kill Rita. She watched her younger cousin drive a knife through the ribs of the woman she loved.
She had been sent on a mission to spy on the order. She came back early, her usually crazy eyes were filled with tears that streamed down her face.
In the comfort of the manor Voldemort showed his true face, when he wasn't in the public eye he was just as if not more handsome than when he was sixteen. Bellatrix was the only one allowed to call him Tom.
He saw his best friend crying when she returned, pulling her into his arms. He held her close, running his long fingers through her curls. "What's wrong, Trixie?" He may not have been able to feel romantic love but he cared about his followers and especially Bellatrix as she became his best friend.
"They killed her, Tom. Sirius killed Rita." Bellatrix clutched onto Tom, practically in his lap as he held her. He did infact pull her into his lap, cradling her like a child. And he supposed she was. The girl was set to turn seventeen in less than a month, but she was still a child fighting in a war.
"We will avenge her, I promise he will pay for what he did. You aren't going on another mission for a while. We'll hold a funeral for her." Tom promised, never once letting go of Bellatrix.
He thought for a minute before rubbing her back. "Let's go get you some water and a nap, Trixie."