November 1968

"Ungh." The man above Bellatrix grunted and groaned, and the bed creaked as he drilled into her. She let out a shaking breath and shut her eyes tightly as she waited for him to finish. She winced at the feel of his come leaching into her body, and she was abruptly grateful for the contraceptive spells and the charms against disease that she'd cast on herself before this encounter. Swithin Mulciber sighed as he hauled himself off of Bellatrix. The two of them started to dress, and Bellatrix reminded him,

"You're prepaid for seven sessions, sir, and this was number five. So you've still got two remaining."

"Excellent," said Mulciber. He flashed Bellatrix a smile that made her shiver. She'd known this man all her life; he was one of her father's friends.

Bellatrix had been expelled from Hogwarts in the spring of her fifth year for harassing and bullying two Gryffindor girls to the point of one running away from the school. Bellatrix had cursed the girls' textbooks to vomit on them in class. She'd hexed the girls to trip and fall down staircases. And Albus Dumbledore had personally seen to it that, at the end of his final term as Hogwarts' headmaster, Armando Dippet had expelled Bellatrix Black. She was a menace to her schoolmates, the wizards had said. She was disrespectful to teachers. She was cruel. She was vicious. She was an unrepentant and persistent bully. She was not welcome back for the autumn term, for her sixth year.

Bellatrix's parents had not taken the news well. The summer had been spent with Druella Black sobbing in bouts and Cygnus Black breaking quite a lot of things. Bellatrix had been slapped and scolded every single day. Finally, on the first of September, Andromeda and Narcissa had gone off to school again, and Bellatrix had been told that in three weeks' time, when her birthday came and she was of age, she was to leave the family home.

She'd done just that, but she reckoned her parents would not much care for the choice she'd made about where to go. Seeking refuge and knowing that nobody would virtuously employ a newly seventeen-year-old expelled school bully, Bellatrix went to the brothel in Knockturn Alley, the Dancing Doxy. She'd begged the madam to take her in, and she'd been shown a small room and taught the fundamental rules of working the customer base. Madam Sophie actually seemed quite glad to have Bellatrix. One of her girls had run off and gotten married, Madam Sophie said, and Bellatrix was young and fresh and pretty.

Bellatrix had not anticipated that most of her customers would be friends of her father's. It disgusted her, the way that the men she'd known growing up would lie atop her and take her body as though they hadn't been friendly with her parents. She didn't want any of them. But the pay was decent - enough for her to feed herself at the White Wyvern - and she had a bed in which to rest her head at night.

"I hope you enjoyed yourself, Mr Mulciber," Bellatrix said now. She'd had this man five times in the six weeks she'd been working as a prostitute. He certainly seemed to like her. He'd purchased a seven-session package from Madam Sophie. It never took long. Mulciber was a quick fuck.

"You're always delicious, Miss Black," Mulciber replied. Bellatrix flashed him a little smile and Scoured her sheets, then Siphoned his come out of her body. She pulled up her blankets and tugged down the hem of her satin nightgown, and she said to him,

"I'll take you downstairs. Hope you have a good rest of the night."

He hesitated. He cleared his throat, his plump face still red, and he said, "You should go home."

Bellatrix's mouth fell open a little. "Did my father ask you to tell me that?"

"No." Mulciber huffed a breath. "Miss Black, I think your parents are devastated by -"

"If they wanted me at home, they would come and fetch me," she said in a prim voice, "or they never would have kicked me out. Mr Mulciber, is there anything else I can do for you today?"

"No, there isn't." Mulciber opened the door that led into the corridor. Bellatrix walked with him down the creaky wooden stairs and through a smoky parlour where Old Joe was playing the upright piano. Bellatrix guided Mulciber over to Madam Sophie and said in a quiet tone,

"Mr Mulciber has two sessions remaining, Madam Sophie."

"Thank you. Good day, Mr Mulciber." Madam Sophie flashed a toothy grin as Mulciber walked out of the darkened entryway into the Dancing Doxy. On a leather chair, a wizard sat with Veronique, a French prostitute, giggling on his lap. Madam Sophie waited a moment, and then she said to Bellatrix,

"A masked wizard came in here asking specifically for you."

"Really?" Bellatrix chomped her lip. She followed Madam Sophie's gaze to where a figure in a dark hood sat. She could just make out that he was wearing a silver mask, and she frowned. It wasn't the first time they'd gotten a wizard in a mask. Sometimes men wore masks or hoods or both to protect their identity coming in here. But her curiosity was piqued. Who was it that wanted her specifically but did not wish to be known? She cleared her throat and asked Madam Sophie,

"Shall I negotiate with him?"

"Get a good price," said Madam Sophie. Bellatrix nodded. She steadied herself and stalked over to where the hooded figure sat. Old Joe began playing a spirited waltz on the piano, and Bellatrix smiled down to the man in his intimidating silver mask.

"Hello, sir. You asked for me?"

"Bellatrix." His voice sounded vaguely familiar, but she couldn't quite place it. She frowned again, then quickly corrected her expression and sat in the chair beside him.

"What did you have in mind, sir?"

He stared at her for a very long moment, and she thought that he wouldn't answer. But then he said from under his mask,

"I want to touch you."

She smiled warmly and nodded. "Yes. Of course. You can touch."

"Allow me to clarify." He drummed his fingers on the leather arm on the chair. "I want to touch you until you come."

Bellatrix felt her eyebrows creep up. She hadn't had an orgasm in… well, it had been a long time. She'd been at school, and masturbating was more than a little difficult in the group dormitory setting. Then she'd been expelled, and she'd been stressed and fearful at home. Then she'd begun work as a prostitute, which meant loads of sex but no real pleasure. She did not suppose she had climaxed in months. She cleared her throat, feeling surprised by the wizard's request. She curled her lips up and admitted,

"That sounds very nice. And how shall I please you?"

"Touching you will bring me sufficient pleasure." His eyes were dark. She could see them through the holes in his mask. She could see his lips moving through a grate covering his mouth. She gulped, and he asked, "How much?"

"Oh. Erm…" Bellatrix looked up to see Madam Sophie glaring at her, evidently unhappy that negotiations were taking so long. Bellatrix didn't have schema for this. Nobody ever came in asking to pleasure the prostitutes. She let out a little nervous laugh and said, "Erm… ten Galleons."

The masked wizard tipped his head and tutted. "That will get you into trouble. Your time is worth more than that. What if it takes you a long time to come?"

Bellatrix grinned and demurred. "I won't… I'll try to…"

"I won't accept acting." The wizard shook his head. "I will pay for as long as it takes. Twenty Galleons."

"I don't think this is how negotiations are meant to work," Bellatrix laughed, but he sighed and pulled out a small bag of coins.

"This is twenty-five. Take it to your madam."

"Sir." Bellatrix stared at the bag in shock, but he pushed it at her, and she suddenly wondered what exactly he was going to try to do to her. A spike of fear went up her spine, but she took the bag and nodded her thanks. She walked over to where Madam Sophie sat at the bar, and she held out the bag of coins.

"Twenty-five Galleons," she announced, and Madam Sophie's eyes went round.

"Merlin's beard. Is he urinating on you or something?"

"No. He's… erm… he's going to touch me." Bellatrix felt her cheeks go hot. "Until I finish."

Madam Sophie looked shocked. "Well, did you at least offer the man a drink on the house? Gracious, girl!"

"Sorry. Of course." Bellatrix hurried back over to the masked wizard and quickly asked, "May I get you some firewhisky or a -"

"I'd rather go upstairs now." He stood from his chair, and Bellatrix nodded. She led him to the stairs and slowly climbed them, feeling terribly anxious as she reached her door. She opened it and stepped inside, and she offered,

"May I take your cloak, sir? Your boots?"

"I'm fine." He kept his hood up and sank onto the edge of Bellatrix's bed. He studied it and seemed thoughtful for a moment. Bellatrix shut the door and locked it, and she grabbed her wand. She started casting protective charms on herself, but the wizard interjected, "You don't need those. I'm not going to be entering your body in any way."

"You certainly could, for what you paid," Bellatrix offered. He was silent. He dragged his fingers over the quilt on Bellatrix's bed, and he mused,

"I haven't been here in twenty years."

"Well. Welcome back, sir," Bellatrix smiled. He stared at her, and she studied his ornately carved silver mask. It was aggressive and beautiful at the same time. She tucked her hair behind her ear and asked, "Is there anything I can do for you? Erm… perhaps I could touch you or use my mouth on you? I want you to feel good."

"You're new at this," he guessed, and she shrugged, sinking her teeth into her lip.

"Sort of, yes. Is it that obvious?"

"You are eager to please," he noted. "When is the last time anyone pleased you?"

Bellatrix's eyes welled, and she shook her head. "It isn't my job to receive pleasure. It's my job to give it."

"You have this job because you incessantly tortured two Gryffindor girls, and Albus Dumbledore saw an opportunity to rid himself of you," the wizard said. Bellatrix's mouth fell open. Her breath quickened, along with her heart.

"Who are you?" she whispered. "Another friend of my father's?"

"No, not really," the wizard said, shaking his head. "Just a person who keeps track of news. If you're going to be in a place like this, Bellatrix, the least you could do is enjoy it every now and then."

"I'm fine." Bellatrix bowed her head, desperate not to tear up. She blinked quickly and whispered again, "I'm fine."

"Swithin Mulciber was in here before me," the wizard said, and Bellatrix was going to ask how he knew that, but then she realised she'd walked Mulciber down into the parlour. The masked wizard guessed, "I can't imagine you enjoy your time with Swithin Mulciber all that terribly much."

"Are you going to spend your twenty-five Galleons' worth of time taunting me, sir?" Bellatrix snapped, looking up at him. He shook his head, reaching to stroke gently at her curls. He spoke in a quiet, easy voice then as he said,

"I am going to spend this time making you forget about your expulsion and your parents and the nature of your work. For just a few minutes, you're going to be happy again."

"Why?" Bellatrix whispered the word. She reached up to cover his fingers with hers. "Why are you doing this?"

"Because," the wizard said, "you are not the sort of witch who deserves to be bogged down by the weight of Albus Dumbledore's smug victory. Someday you'll be something much, much greater than a whore in the Dancing Doxy, but if that's what you must be right now, then I mean to at least make it manageable."

She wondered again who he was, studying his eyes and lips through the mask. She couldn't place his features or his voice. She gulped and said,

"Tell me what to do, sir."

"Lie down on your back, Bellatrix." The wizard watched her as she sank down onto her pillows, sliding her knickers down and off. She balled them up beside her and shut her eyes.

Then she felt her legs being parted, and she felt his hands sliding up and down the insides of her thighs. She breathed in sharply and murmured,

"Your hands are rough."

"I apologise," he said, but she whispered,

"I like it."

He kept caressing her thighs and brushing his thumbs along the inner parts of her legs until at last Bellatrix felt wet and swollen. She usually used Lubrico charms for sex with clients. She'd perfected the art of casting the charm nonverbally and surreptitiously so as not to embarrass the customer, but she was almost never wet enough on her own. She didn't want these men. But now, right now, she was wet. As his fingers stroked around the outsides of her entrance, she realised she was also extremely sensitised, for she'd had two clients tonight, and both had been rough with her.

"I do not wish to hurt you," murmured the masked wizard. Bellatrix hummed a little and insisted,

"I'm fine."

"You keep saying that, but it isn't true," he noted. "Allevio Trio."

Suddenly Bellatrix felt her aching pain soothed, and she huffed a breath of relief. She opened her eyes and stared up at the mask, up at his dark eyes. Who was he? She studied his eyes as his middle and forefingers dragged back and forth around her folds. His thumb started to draw circles on her clit, and she whimpered a little. She clutched her her sheets in a way she never did with clients, and she whispered,

"Oh. Erm… that feels… oh."

"Good." The wizard in the mask had a little shake in his voice now. His left hand drifted up to Bellatrix's breast, and he massaged her soft tissue through the material of her nightgown. She threw her head back against the pillow and pushed herself up onto her elbows. He dragged his thumb over her peaked nipple, and Bellatrix realised her nipples almost never got hard with clients. She gasped when he twisted two fingers into her body, hooking them as his thumb kept pressing and circling on her clit. She wrenched her eyes shut and moaned. She actually moaned for a man who was paying her.

His breath was coming quick and ragged through the grate on his mask. He was excited. Bellatrix wanted him. She wanted him to take his cock out and put it into her. She wanted sex - good sex. Why didn't he want that? She arched her back, and he squeezed at her breast in a way that made her cry out. His hand moved more deeply against her entrance, his fingers stroking and pulsing, his thumb pushing circles. She was going to lose herself, she thought. Everything was going hot and tight. Her ears were starting to ring. She was seeing spots behind her eyelids.

"Oh, oh, oh." She started to buck her hips against his hand, and when he tightened his fingers on her breast, she completely lost control. She snapped like a wire, suddenly feeling all the tension of the last few months detonate. She cried out so loudly that she worried distantly that someone would be concerned about an injury. She moaned helplessly through her body contracting around his fingers. She whined and whimpered as his hand moved from her breast to her cheek. She leaned against his hand and rolled her hips, coming down from her high and whispering,

"Oh, Merlin's beard."

He was panting now, and when he stood slowly from the bed, she watched him turn away and murmur a few Scouring and Siphoning spells. He was cleaning up his hand, she knew, from touching her. But she thought maybe he had a mess in his trousers, too, for he was adjusting himself and clearing his throat as he turned back to her. He nodded and said,

"I hope that was all right for you."

She grinned broadly, shaking her head as she slid her knickers on. "I'm meant to say that to you, not the other way round."

"Do you want more?" the wizard asked, and Bellatrix froze. She glanced back at the bed as she sat on the edge.

"Erm… what, right now?"

He laughed behind his mask. "No. Some other time. If I came back."

Bellatrix raised her eyebrows. "You mean to repeatedly come here and pay twenty-five Galleons to pleasure me, sir?"

"Have you got a problem with that?" he asked, and she shook her head.

"No. None at all."

"Good," he said. "I firmly believe that if your spirits are to be maintained, and your future potential preserved, you should be experiencing pleasure frequently among all of this madness and drudgery. I shall be back on Wednesday."

"Wednesday?" Bellatrix repeated. That was only four days from now. The wizard tipped his head and asked,

"Are you busy on Wednesday?"

"N-No. I'm… Wednesday would be grand. Thank you." Bellatrix chewed her lip and asked, "Are you certain there's nothing I can do to -"

"I am perfectly satisfied." The wizard reached for Bellatrix's left arm. She marveled as he picked up her forearm and examined the inside, dragging his thumb over the flesh there and whispering, "You'll be fine."

"Please, allow me to show you downstairs," Bellatrix offered. The two of them walked in silence down the stairs and into the parlour, and the wizard left without another word. She huffed and breath and watched the door as he went.

"Bellatrix!" hissed a voice from beside her. Bellatrix jolted and flashed a little smile to Marian, another of the whores. She was tall and thin with kinky curls like Bellatrix's, only hers were blonde. Marian stared at Bellatrix with bug eyes and demanded, "Is it true? Did a wizard really come in here and pay twenty-five Galleons to pleasure you?"

"Yes." Bellatrix smirked.

"Ah! I am so jealous!" Marian scoffed. "So. How was he? Did he know what he was doing?"

"Oh, yes. He knew what he was doing." Bellatrix shut her eyes and shivered a little as she remembered his hand on her breast, his fingers on her, the way he'd soothed her ache and the way he'd caressed her arm afterward. She let out a little noise and told Marian. "It was so good."

Marian stared in open-mouthed shock at Bellatrix. "You unimaginable wench," she said playfully. "Getting paid like that to lie there and come. My goodness. I wonder who it was."

"I've honestly got no idea," Bellatrix said, "but I like him. I like him quite a lot."

"Bellatrix!" Madam Sophie's voice rang through the parlour. Bellatrix whirled round and saw a fat, ugly man standing beside Madam Sophie, who was beckoning. Bellatrix gulped, feeling sour bile rise in her mouth as she resolved to get back to work.

Author's Note: For readers of What Alters When It Alteration Finds - The last chapter of that story will be going up tomorrow. I absolutely had to get Chapter 1 of this written and posted.

I hope you will join me on this new novel-length Bellamort story! I am very much looking forward to it! It's something totally different from what I've written before, and I'm looking forward to exploring this new dynamic - a completely different parent/child relationship with Bellatrix/Druella/Cygnus, a very different Bellamort dynamic, a radically altered start to Bellatrix's Death Eater career, etc.

Thank you for reading and for feedback!