Prologue:

Bellatrix's New Pet

South London, September 28, 1982.

8 Months after the death of Lily and James Potter and the fall of Lord Voldemort.

He had less than two pounds to his name, and no hope of acquiring any more without another legally questionable and downright creative plan. Standing in the tube station, on the number 4 platform, his stomach made a noise. It was time to get something to eat.

The tube station was a little too crowded for his tastes. The old woman he had been following, the future victim of an improvisation, struck up a casual conversation with the tube station Constable, inadvertently saving her pocketbook from the skills of his fast fingers.

It was time to find another contributor to his sustenance requirements. He turned and walked up the stairs leading to the streets above, hoping there, in this late hour, the streets of London would be isolated. This might allow him an opportunity to pick a target, preferably someone vulnerable. In the event someone saw him, he could all but disappear into a crowd; another spectacular skill he couldn't really explain.

A nice elderly person would do, or an unsuspecting tourist, like an American.

The thought of his native people actually made him smile, though he had spent the majority of his life in Europe, deep down inside he knew he would return home to the United States one day.

He stood at the top of the tube staircase surveying his surroundings. One and two story homes lined both sides of the one-way cobblestone street. There was slight mist in the air, obscuring the visibility of the street lanterns. He could hear what sounded like a couple arguing from one of the nearby homes, and down the street, in the opposite direction, the sounds of a few gents exiting a pub trailed off as they walked further into the darkness. He closed his eyes, trying to listen.

Standing still, on the threshold of the staircase he shoved his hands back into the pockets of his long-coat hugging the fabric around his frame. Just under two-meters in height, perhaps he was twenty-five. His hair was mouse brown and moderately well kept for a man between residences. The features of his face, aside from looking like he had missed a few meals were rather simple, save his dark blue eyes.

After another moment, he turned left and headed against the flow of traffic. Heading in the direction of the pub noise he hoped his wanderings would lead him towards more people. There he could have his pick of any tipsy chap on his crawl home after a few too many pints.

He walked up on muffled voices much sooner than expected as he stopped outside a long alley between two storefront shops. Storefronts? He hadn't realized he'd walked out of the area of apartment homes. The scenery hadn't changed enough for him to notice. This was a little upsetting, he prided himself on seeing everything, and every angle in any situation, yet was too distracted to notice anything. His mind felt muggy and filled with fog. As if everything he looked at, turned into a stare and a loss of focus. He shook his head and took a step towards the storefront building connected to the alley. With his back to the red brick, he looked up and down the street for any other pedestrians. Things now stayed clear in his mind, though he could definitely feel the fog in his mind like a tidal wave held in stasis by pure will alone.

He heard the muffled voices again, this time definitely coming from down the alley. He moved towards the entrance minding several puddles in the cobble to remain stealthy. Too many experiences as a thief ensured he was a master of not being seen if he did not wish it.

He slinked inside the alley, keeping his back to the corridor wall and drifted behind a large rubbish bin about fifteen meters inside the walkway. Peering over the bin from a crouched position he could see two figures at the opposite end. They were both tall, wearing cloaks of black that seemed to stretch all the way to the ground.

He couldn't completely understand what they were saying. They spoke English, but were using words he did not understand.

"Fucking horrid location!" The man on the left whispered with spite. "There're Muggles everywhere, if we fight, we'll be seen!"

Muggle? He thought. Whatthe hell is a Muggle? He leaned forward closer to the bin in an attempt to hear more.

"Relax Krizzen." The black-cloaked man on the right replied. "The Auror's are obligated to protect the Muggle's, so any battle here gives us the advantage. They hunt Death Eaters, which is why we need to be here, away from the Magical community. Away from stray eyes."

Magical community? Whatever! These guys are nuts! The man thought to himself, however, when a third man in black robes appeared from nowhere, he realized these men were not crazy. The man appeared with a popping sound. His bright, long-blonde hair made for stark contrast against his midnight robes.

"Lucius!" One of the men screamed with a whisper. "You're late!"

"Plans have changed, the Auror's have Narcissa!" He explained with an arrogant tone in his voice. "Bellatrix is going to join you in my stead; I'm going to get my wife. She will explain what needs to be done."

He wondered if his luck could possibly get any worse. There was no possible way of getting out of this alley. The man called Lucius was facing his direction and would surely see if he stood up.

"Bellatrix's tracking the Longbottom's, right now, and as soon as she finds out anything, she'll join you. Wait here, take your orders from her."

Almost instinctively the two men bowed to the blonde man, and with a raise of his hand he vanished with a crack. He appeared to be holding a foot long wooden stick in the hand he raised. Surely not!

A few minutes passed as he listened to the two remaining men talk. Their tone was now much less angry towards each other. Whatever they were about to do, they were excited about it. His curiosity was peaked as they appeared to each brandish a "magic wand."

Out of nowhere, he heard footsteps behind him. He froze in his spot and slowly turned his head around to see who was coming.

His eyes focused on a figure walking down the center of the alley. The figure moved slow, and held a light in his left hand. He could tell from the silhouette cast that this man was a constable.

Just as the beam of the constable's light was about to fix in on him behind the rubbish bin, it snapped away in the direction of the cloaked men at the other end of the alley. The constable walked right past him, focusing on the two men.

"Who goes there?" The constable yelled, in a very authoritative tone.

He could hear the ruffle of fabric, and chose not to wait any longer to look back over the bin. The two men drew their wands which they had fixed in on the intruder.

"Oi mate!" He said, obviously trying to sound charming. "We's just passing through, trying to figure our way back to the tube."

"Tube's this way, I'll show you." The constable said, pointing the back up the alley in which he'd entered. "Follow me."

As the constable turned his back, the man with the wand walked right under the only light in the alley, which slightly illuminated his face. From behind the bin, he could see clearly, every detail as the man raised the wand, aimed it and yelled, "REDUCTO!"

There was a flash of red light which came out of the end of his wand. It traveled as fast a bullet hitting the man squared in the back sending him flying through the alley past the rubbish bin. He couldn't believe what just happened. This really was magic! He just did a spell called 'Reducto' and it sent the constable sailing through the air.

Holy Shit!

The spell did not kill the constable; he was dazed but slowly getting to his feet. He was noticeably reaching for his weapon and rising to his feet when a new voice broke the deadened silence of the alley.

"AVADA KEDARVA!" A female voice screamed. A flash of green light engulfed the constable, and sent him soaring back in the direction from which the 'Reducto' spell sent him just moments before. At the very last second he realized, that the constable was coming right towards where he hid.

The collision was what he expected. The man landed square on top of him and pinned him against both the brick wall and the bin. The adrenaline coursing through his veins cleared his head and his ringing ears within seconds.

This must be the Bellatrix woman they're expecting.

Pinned underneath the corpse of the murdered constable he laughed silently to keep from having a heart attack. His mind tired to process what happened. Abracadabra? That couldn't be what she just said?

"My lady Bellatrix," one of the original two men said with noticeable panic in his voice.

Peering from behind the constable's corpse, a very slender woman stood where the constable was just moments ago. She wore a black gown silhouetted by the streetlights behind here out of the alley. Her jet black hair, and had a frizz to it that looked quite chaotic and quite intentional. Two more figures dressed in black appeared behind her who Bellatrix was expecting based on her lack of reaction.

"Idiots!" She yelled! "Fucking Idiots! We have work to do, and I find you here playing with Muggles!"

"Forgive us my lady," one man said with a bow. "He arrived just before you, I assure you we were not playing with him."

Bellatrix lowered her wand, but the look on her face did not diminish. "You are lucky Krizzen, we have work to do."

"The five of us have a date with the Longbottom's, and it'll take all our efforts." Bellatrix turned to the two men who had appeared shortly after her arrival. "Barty, Rodolphus head to the rally point." She said and they both vanished with a crack. "Toya, check the constable, make sure he is dead, we leave immediately."

The man pinned under the constable knew he was about to be discovered. Reaching inside his coat, he pulled out a very small pistol. Footsteps approached to where he laid pinned under the corpse. His eyes were closed and prayed he would not be discovered.

"Bloody hell?" Toya exclaimed. "LUMOS!"

He could see a bright light through his eyelids, and knew at once he was a secret no longer.

"There's someone else here, a street rat Muggle!" Toya yelled pulling corpse off of him, "Filthy Muggle!"

He opened his eyes, as if just waking from a long nap and raised his free hand to shield his eyes from a light coming from the end of Toya's wand. "Oi," he yelled acting as drunk as possible. "This is my spot, go find your own place to sleep." He added a significant slur, both to hide his accent and sell his lie.

The light of Toya's wand changed from white to pink without a word, and the pink light grabbed him around the throat hurling him off the ground and slamming him into the brick wall a foot off the ground. The wand held inches from his throat, and he knew he would need to act soon before he ran out of air.

"Tukston," Bellatrix yelled, apparently speaking Toya's last name. "Finish him, I don't care who—"

The sound of the gun firing seemed to startle everyone, except Bellatrix as a large pink mist erupted from the back of Toya Tukston's head. The wand light extinguished and they hit the ground. As Toya's lifeless body came to rest next to him he gasped desperately for air. He made a series of choking noises in an act to disguised his prize, the magic wand he snatched on the way down.

No one made a sound until Bellatrix. Her stunned look quickly turned to amusement as let out a quick cackle of laughter followed by a deeper belly laugh of hysteria.

"EXPELLIARMUS!" Bellatrix yelled, and the pistol flipped out of his hands.

He really didn't want to expose that he'd taken Toya's wand, but since the pistol was ten meters from him he needed a new plan. Rolling over quickly he pointed the wand at Bellatrix's face!

She laughed even louder. "And what do you expect to do with that Muggle?" She stepped forward, and for the first time he could really see her. Perhaps thirty years old, she was without a doubt both gorgeous scary as hell. She definitely had a look of pure insanity as she stood there, arms outstretched, cackling.

"I don't want any trouble, love." He gasped trying to act suave, and failing. "I was too busy hiding to hear anything, just let me go!"

"Christ, Toya's got a god-damn hole in his head the size of me fist!" Krizzen yelled, in a panicked Scottish accent unrecognizable until now. "Fucking blood everywhere!"

"Toya's an idiot." Bellatrix snorted. "A tad fitting he got killed by a Muggle."

Ah-hah! Muggle, a non-magical person!

"Just let me go," he said standing to his feet, Toya's wand pointed still at her face.

Bellatrix looked back at him, as her straight face morphed into a smile. "Oh, you killed a Death Eater pretty Muggle! You have much to answer for."

"Please, I don't want to hurt you!"

"Hurt me?" Bellatrix snorted again, with an air of astonishment. "Oh, pretty, pretty boy, in what universe do you think you could ever hurt me?"

He raised the wand a tad higher.

"The curse is AVADA KEDARVA." She said, as Krizzen made a gasp behind him. "It's the killing curse, and the one I used on that git over there."

"Aye, the green one."

"It is impossible to defend, impossible to block, and aside from a one year old boy who will not live to see two, impossible to survive. Go for it. Call forth the curse and channel all of your rage through the end of your wand!"

"Sounds lovely," he replied. What was that spell, that first one? Think!

"NOW DO IT!" She screamed, her tone moving rapidly from giddy to plain nasty. "You get the first shot, and I assure you I am gonna kill you when you fail. Might as well go out fighting."

"Piss off." He retorted, in a desperate attempt to stall. He couldn't remember the spell Krizzen used to send the constable flying.

"CRUCIO!" She yelled, and the flash of red light from her wand brought with it a new definition to the word pain. His eyes seared closed and when he opened them Bellatrix was standing directly in front of him deriving a sort of sick sexual pleasure from his pain.

He didn't make a sound, as he had no energy to speak. The pain was nothing like he remembered, nothing like breaking bones or burns. Definitely not like a broken heart, but yet, at the same time a combination of the three multiplied by a million.

She released him. "I am impressed pretty American Muggle. You took that well, most scream for any creator they can imagine when I do that, pretty Muggle man." Still holding her wand at him, she dropped her arms again to expose her chest, now heaving in her black corset. "I am at your mercy Muggle pretty, kill me or I'll do it again!"

What was that damned spell? Reducto? He recanted what she had said about the killing curse, about hate, and did everything she said inside himself to stir up his emotions. When it felt like he was going to erupt, he closed his eyes to channel it. As he opened them, he saw Bellatrix stepping towards him again. With an exhale; he released the river of rage inside him.

"Reducto!" He yelled with all his might, as a red disturbance launched from the end of his wand.

The spell caught her square in the face and sent her flying backwards, flipping her feet over her head. Unlike the constable, she did not hit the ground. Bellatrix landed gracefully, after vanishing and reappearing immediately. In doing so, she righted herself.

"Pretty Muggle, dead Muggle trying to be a wizard, ha!." She echoed with a laugh. "Krizzen, get the the rally point. I'll be there in ten minutes, go!" Bellatrix commanded down the alley.

"Yes, my lady." Krizzen's voice trailed off as he vanished.

He snapped his mind back into focus, forcing his legs to answer his brain's screams to run. Just as he began to move she moved in on him with elegant grace and speed.

Startled, he blinked her into focus. Just as he pursed his lips to cast 'Reducto' on her again, the tip of her wand touched his throat. What felt like a hundred thousands volts of electric current ripped through his flesh sending him back against the brick. Bellatrix never let her want separate itself from his skin. Again he made no sound, which actually wasn't too impressive. Whatever she was doing to him now, was one-tenth of the 'Crucio' spell she had done before.

She released the spell, but did not remove the wand-tip from his neck. He could see her now, as the tears washed from his eyes, coming into focus. Her skin was extremely pale, and he was impressed with her beauty. She was still breathing heavy, her black hair and black dress in direct contrast to her milky white skin. Interrupted by two trickles of bright red blood dripping from her nose.

She noticed him staring at her mouth, and smiled. Her pink tongue sneaked out past her dark lips to taste the blood on them. She looked down, tasted her blood, looked back up at him and smiled a bloody toothed smile.

"Good pet," she whispered with a rasp in her voice and patted his head in a deliberate and exaggerated motion. The look in her eyes was perhaps the most disturbed look he had ever seen on the face of any living person.

He moved his hand to turn his wand towards her, but her reaction was instantaneous. Electric current flooded him again and again he was in the place in his mind where he went when she did either of those two spells. Extremely aware of the pain, but at the same time disconnected from it. A prisoner inside his head, until such time as she released him.

When he came to this time, his wand hand was pinned to the brick wall by her free hand holding his wrist. She had not disarmed him.

"Bad pet doggie Muggle, so pretty-pretty," she said again in a scratch. "Doggie needs punishing, eh?"

He looked at her, but did not speak.

"Pretty boy are you afraid of Bellatrix Lestrange?"

"I think I have a very good right to be." He couldn't believe he spoke, and the look on her face showed them sharing this moment of bewilderment.

"Pretty doggie dares to speak to Bellatrix," she said rhetorically. "Pretty Muggle has the nerve to address me? I was the Dark Lord's favorite; I will help him rise again. Such a ghastly time this is, pet, when Muggle doggies think they are permitted to speak to me. A noble and honorable Death Eater from the pure-blood Black family, pretty doggie." Her grip on his wrist seared with pain as she gouged her black fingernails into his skin. She blinked hard, realizing that she had lost her train of thought as she snarled her bloodstained teeth at him.

"The curse is pronounced Avada Kedavra," she yelled, leaning into him and slowly emphasizing the syllables of the curse. She pressed her wand deep into the side of his neck, moving it slightly from his voice box to allow him to speak.

"Avada Kedavra?" he said with a slight amount of caution, but nothing happened, as his wand remained dormant.

"Muggle doggie has good pronunciation," she cackled with a laugh and shocked him again.

The alley and Bellatrix came into focus again, "How can you do that without speaking?" he belched at her quickly.

As if expecting him to speak, she gathered a mouth full of blood and spit in his face from just a few inches away. "Pretty Muggle doggie thinks that he is entitled audience with the Dark Lady Bellatrix simply because he can withstand pain! Filthy disgusting Muggle animal!"

"Forgive me, my lady." he said, improvising to show her some respect, though he clearly had none for her.

"Pretty Muggle wants to shag me? Is that why you dare speak? For a tumble?" Bellatrix's eyes sweeled, looking deep into his soul. "Oh," she gasped. "Muggle lover is curious. Mudblood Muggle, doesn't understand that some spells are verbal and others are not. The stronger the witch, the stronger is her ability to learn to cast spells silently, CRUCIO!" She didn't even pause to speak the 'Crucio' as if it belonged in her last sentence. Crucio, the worse of the two spells, seemed to come as a reward, whereas the lesser was punishment. For some reason, this didn't seem odd to him.

He picked his head up when she released him from 'Crucio.' Snot was dripping from his nose, or perhaps it was blood, he couldn't be sure.

"The curse!" she screamed, still stabbing his neck with her wand.

"Avada Kedavra." the man bellowed, and although his wand shuddered in his hand, noting happened.

He opened his eyes, and saw sky this time. She was holding his head up by his hair, with her hand curled in with his brown locks, now soaked with sweat. She used his hair to knock his skull off the bricks a few times then pushed his face to the right with her wand hand so that he could see his. It was still pinned against the brick with her other hand.

He looked at his wand. Having an epiphany as to what she was trying to do, excitement filled him.

"AVADA KEDAVRA!" The pulse of green light seemed to leap out of the wand before he had even finished saying the spell.

Bellatrix gasped, and released both his wrist and his neck. He slumped all the way to the cobblestones beneath his feet as his legs completely gave out. She backed away muttering to herself, as he attempted to get back to his feet.

"Muggle, mud doggie can do the killing curse, ha ha! Muggle pretty is a good doggie, he can do the killing curse, ha ha." She continued to cackle until she realized he was on his feet, wiping the sweat off his brow with his wand hand.

She ran over to him, he face beaming. Her dark gray lipstick smeared across her face and mixed with blood. She grabbed him by both shoulders, hoping and jumping like a giddy child.

"Bellatrix has a secret weapon! Bellatrix has a secret weapon! A pretty slave Muggle pretty doggie, pretty, pretty. One that no Ministry of Magic," she turned her head and spat, "can ever detect! Pretty, pretty slave doggie of Bellatrix."

He just looked at her, half smiling, half shaking his head as if someone had just given him an open can of motor oil for Christmas. He didn't know what to do or say. Without warning she leaned in and licked him, from chin to brow then returning again to arms length and cackling.

Bellatrix released him and seemed to regain her composure, reaching into a fold of her corset to remove a watch on a chain. She looked at the time, and shouted "Shit!" Stuffing the watch back where it came from, she ran her wand hand through her black hair, looking up and down the alley trying to think.

Finally she seemed to have a plan, and turned towards him with a snap of her finger. Her face lit up in excitement as she stepped towards him raising her wand.

"IMPERIO!" she said, and with a flash of white light, all the cares in the world seemed to drop from his mind. His arms dropped to his side, and he assumed the most vacant of expressions.

"Quickly now, doggie. Oh, I can't call you doggie, what would the house elves think?" she said with a laugh, smacking her forehead with her wand. "Your name is now Serahn, and I, doggie Serahn, am your mistress. In other words, your master. Do you understand?"

"Yes, mistress," he said on cue, causing her to smile.

"Do you live near here?"

"No, mistress."

"Where is your home?" she asked, speaking quickly, looking up and down the alley.

"I have none, mistress."

"Okay, there is a Muggle Inn down this street, do you know it?" she said pointing her wand hand down the right side of the alley.

"Yes, mistress. It is called the Shropshire."

"Yes, that's the one. You go there, check in, and await my return. I want you cleaned, groomed and dressed in all black to honor my pureblood family's name. Do you understand?"

"No, mistress," he said without expression.

"What?" she screamed, stepping back and raising her wand. "No, you will not honor my family, or no you do not understand?"

"No, I am unable mistress. I haven't any money," Serahn said without expression.

"Ah, now that is an issue, doggie Serahn." Bellatrix paused and moved her wand hand to her mouth in contemplation. "Doggie needs Muggle money. Where am I gonna get mudblood money?" She whispered to herself repeatedly several times, before stopping mid step and smiling. "Doggie Serahn, do you remember the name of the curse I just put on you?"

"Yes, mistress. You called –"

"Wait!" she screamed, stepping forward to grab the wrist of his wand hand. She moved his wand hand away from her. She laughed aloud at herself rolling her eyes, not completely sure what would happen if two people put the same on each other. Obviously she did not want to find out. "Go ahead, say it."

"IMPERIO!" Serahn said, as a white flash of light shot from the end of his wand.

"Impossible!" Bellatrix laughed with a snort. "You, my pretty-pretty, are a fast learner. Lady Bellatrix might just owe you a good tumble for being such a good doggie."

"Yes, mistress." Serahn replied in cue with emotionless words.

"Now, to end the spell, you say Repracto. Say it."

"REPRACTO!" Serahn said in a dry tone, as a sound of air being quickly sucked through a straw emanated from his wand. There was no light.

"Good, good! "she screamed with a giggle, releasing his hand and jumping up and down with excitement. "That's a good boy! Now, you are to use this curse to get yourself the things you need. Food, Muggle transportation and whatever else you filthy animals need. But heed this warning, doggie of mine," she grabbed his face and turned it back from his wand to face hers. The fire in her eyes, so intense even through the Imperius Curse, Serahn could feel it. "No one, and I fucking mean NO ONE, is to ever see this wand. They are not to see you use it, possess it, or have any knowledge of how to use it. If you are caught with it, you and I never met. Do you understand?"

"Yes, mistress." Serahn exhaled as Bellatrix released her grip on his face. She reached again inside her corset fold to remove her watch and look at it. She let out an exhale through her bloodied nose.

"Do you understand what I ordered you to do?" Bellatrix asked again.

"Yes, mistress."

"Damnit pretty slave boy, repeat back everything I have told you."

"You are Bellatrix Lestrange of a noble, pure-blood family. Reducto, explodes," as he said that, the spell jumped from his wand tip, prompting Bellatrix to reaffirm her grip on his wrist. "Expelliarmus disarms." A red spell was launched down the alley. "Lumos casts light. Some spells can be cast non-verbally, depending on the strength of the witch." Bellatrix began to smile, realizing his level of absorption. "Avada Kedavra is the killing curse. Imperio controls people. Repracto ends the Imperio. I am to go to the Shropshire Hotel, check in, bathe, groom and await your arrival in black to honor your family. I am to use Imperio to acquire food, lodging and transportation from other Muggles. And, under no circumstances is anyone to ever see me possess or use a wand."

Bellatrix stood there smiling, stunned, as if contemplating all the mischief she would cause through him. "Perhaps, with the Dark Lord away, it wouldn't be a total loss if I have you to do my bidding."

"Yes, mistress."

"Enough!" she yelled, shoving his head back into the bricks. "Knock that vacant doggie look off your face." She smacked him hard across the cheek. "I command you to snap out this and grow a damn personality."

Serahn blinked and smiled, bowing his head in an exaggerated sign of respect. "Whatever you command, my lady Bellatrix."

"Well, that's a start," she screamed with a belly cackle. "I will fix you more later. Now go, do what you need to do. I will come for you in a few days, once the smoke clears."

"Yes, mistress." Serahn gapped with a smile of sarcasm, bowed his head and turned to walk away.

"Wait, pet." She yelled, and walked towards him. He turned around to face her, finding her wand pressed into his shirt right over the heart.

In a very low serious voice just above a whisper she spoke to Serahn slowly. "Are you such a dumb Muggle that I need to explain just exactly how bad things will be for you should you betray me?"

Serahn smiled, and took a deep breath. With a smile, "No mistress Bellatrix, I'll not betray you."

Bellatrix laughed again, "Now go, doggie Serahn, I'll return soon for your tumble."

As he walked away, he heard her disappear. Turning at the end of the alley in the direction of the hotel, he glanced back up where she was once standing. The alley was empty.

Six days later, still in the one hundred twenty pound a night suite of the Shropshire, Bellatrix was nowhere to be found. Sitting on the couch in the main room of the gathering room of his suite, he watched television. Dressed all in black slacks and a pressed black button down shirt he waited. On October 4th, 1983, at approximately seventeen minutes past ten in the morning, the Imperius Curse Bellatrix placed on him lifted. He felt its control wash away from him like a heavy winter coat falling to the floor. Serahn's head dropped with a sigh.

Bellatrix Lestrange was either dead, or had released him.

He thought the latter was unlikely.