Direct continuation of Chapter 2 of Harry Potter and the Half Blood Prince-

"Faithful Failures", a direct continuation of Chapter 2 (Spinner's End) of Harry Potter and the Half Blood Prince—

The fiery strands of magic that bound Narcissa's and Snape's hands faded away. Bellatrix carefully removed her wand from their clasped hands. Snape took his hand away from Narcissa and stood up. Narcissa stood up and then collapsed onto the couch, a great look of relief on her face. Bellatrix turned her cold gaze from Narcissa to Snape, and back again. She couldn't believe what had just happened. Snape spoke first. "I suspect you believe me now, Bellatrix?"

"Now that you've made an Unbreakable Vow that will require you to kill Dumbledore if my nephew does not?"

"Yes, Bellatrix," said Snape, sounding bored.

Bellatrix frowned, her eyes narrowed. "I suppose that I hardly have a choice, right?"

"Well, Bella—may I call you Bella?"

"No," snapped Bellatrix, her temper rising.

"Oh of course. It's only your dear sister and the Dark Lord that are allowed to call you by a pet name, no?" Bellatrix huffed, her grip on her wand tightening. "But Bellatrix," he smiled, "Don't you think you should pay me a little more respect?"

"No," she said flatly, "You may have proven to me that you are indeed loyal to the Dark Lord, but I am loyal only to the Dark Lord. That means that even if we are working toward the same ends, I don't have to like you."

"I know what you mean but I think you fail to understand me. I suggested that you pay me more respect than you have, I did not suggest for you to like me better." Bellatrix kept her expression reasonably calm. She tried to clear her head of all emotions. She was intensely jealous of Snape because of the fact that the Dark Lord was giving him more information than she believed was due. She was also extremely angry that he could ruffle her emotions so, she felt threatened and annoyed by him, while he simply seemed amused by her. She looked over to the couch and saw her sister looking tired and relieved. Bellatrix decided she wanted to continue her conversation with Snape privately. "Narcissa!"

Narcissa snapped to attention, looking around at Bellatrix and Snape. "Yes, Bella?"

"Cissy, would you please leave? I'll catch up with you in a few minutes."

"Alright Bella, I'll see you later then." Narcissa stood up and disapparated.

Snape and Bellatrix were left alone in the living room. Bellatrix was glaring at him scathingly. "You asked your sister to leave," Snape observed lightly.

"I wanted to finish our conversation," snarled Bellatrix.

"And what, by chance, did you want to say that would finish this conversation?"

"First of all, I wanted to ask you why you think that you deserve more respect from me than what you get?"

"Well, as you may have already figured out—and I think you might have, assuming that the colour in your face rises with anger or jealously—the Dark Lord considers me very useful to him. I am his spy at Hogwarts, I have given him more information on Albus Dumbledore and the Order of the Phoenix than he would dare to even tell you. Compared to me, Bellatrix, you are nothing but a faithful failure to the Dark Lord." Bellatrix couldn't stand his taunts. In her mind, she was trying to tell herself that none of it was true, that she was the Dark Lord's most trusted, most faithful, that Severus Snape was liar and a coward. But already another emotion, a more powerful drive, had started up in her: she wanted to see him cry. She wanted to control him, to master him. She wanted to cause him pain, to watch him writhe on the floor, begging for forgiveness. It was what she lived for. She would laugh as she held the Cruciatus Curse over him until he fell into a madness that was worse than death.

"Snape," she inquired menacingly, "Do you really think that the position of the Dark Lord's most trusted advisor is big enough for the two of us?"

"No," sneered Snape, "That's why I suggest that you show me more respect."

Bellatrix pulled out her wand and drew back a few paces. "You may be Dumbledore's pet, but I'm more powerful and more faithful to the Dark Lord than you'll ever be."

Snape too pulled out his wand, but his voice did not lose its mockery. "More faithful to the Dark Lord, then? If you're so faithful to the Dark Lord, then why don't you just accept his decisions and stop questioning what he does?"

Snape's words went right through Bellatrix without registering. She felt her hatred for Snape rise, her lust for torture the only thing on her mind. "Quit playing games, Snape," she growled.

"Whatever you want," said Snape scornfully.

But before he could finish saying "want," Bellatrix yelled, "Crucio!" and Snape fell to the floor. As he screamed in pain, Bellatrix shrieked with laughter. He yelled and cried, and she smiled, holding her wand steady, enjoying his pain more than anything else in the world. But just as she felt the resistance leaving him, the madness coming into his body, she finally registered the words he had said earlier. "Most faithful..." She realized that driving Snape out of his mind, no matter how pleasurable, needed to wait. She broke the Cruciatus Curse, however reluctantly.

Snape stood up, shaking. He brushed himself off. "You are a fool, Bellatrix. Do you think the Dark Lord will be pleased that you just nearly drove me mad?"

Bellatrix smiled. "I didn't, though, did I?"