Author's Note: This is AU after Harry's 5th year. This is a Bellatrix Lestrange mentors/trains Harry fic. Sirius Black will also play a role. I have some ideas to bring in other characters, including Dumbledore, Snape, the Weasleys, Hermoine, and the Malfoys, but the story will be centered around Bellatrix, Harry, and Sirius. Bellatrix is slightly OOC. I am trying to keep her personality close to the books, but the Bellatrix Lestrange from the books was loyal to Voldemort and would likely not betray him and train Harry.
Sirius pushed the door open and ran into the Ministry of Magic, where his fifteen year old godson was surrounded by ten of Voldemort's supporters.
Harry was about to give Malfoy the prophecy that the Order of the Phoenix had been protecting all year. Voldemort already wanted to kill Harry. If he knew what the prophecy said, it would only make him more determined to kill Harry. And the Order did not want that to happen. Fortunately, they – Sirius, Lupin, Moody, Tonks, and Kingsley - made it there in time to stop it from happening, but just barely.
Tonks sent a Stunning Spell at Malfoy before he could take the prophecy from Harry. Harry quickly moved out of the way. Once he was out of the line of fire, the members of the Order rained Stunning Spells down at the Death Eaters. They hit a few of the Death Eaters, but most of the Death Eaters dodged the jets of red light and drew their wands on the members of the Order.
One of the Death Eaters sent a hex at Sirius, who dodged it and responded almost immediately with his own spell. Sirius didn't know with whom he was dueling and he didn't care. It felt good to vent some of his anger and frustration at being locked up in Number Twelve Grimmauld Place for so long on a Death Eater - any Death Eater.
Sirius grinned when his spell hit the Death Eater and the masked man fell backwards, landing on the hard floor with a resounding thud, but his grin faded instantly when, looking for his next fight, he saw Dolohov pointing his wand at Harry, who was lying on the ground. Sirius ran forward and rammed Dolohov, shoving him backwards, away from Harry. Dolohov stumbled, but didn't fall.
As soon as he regained his balance, Dolohov turned his wand on Sirius, but Sirius was ready for him. Dolohov had barely opened his mouth when a spark of light flew from Sirius' wand. The hex narrowly missed Dolohov.
Dolohov drew his wand back. Harry knew Dolohov was going to use the same spell on Sirius that he'd used on Harry just moments ago. Harry jumped up and yelled, "Petrificus Totalus!"
The hex hit Dolohov, who was too busy dueling Sirius to pay attention to what Harry was doing. Dolohov's arms and legs snapped together and he fell backwards.
"Nice one!" Sirius said proudly, clapping a hand on his godson's back. He saw a jet of red light coming towards them out of the corner of his eye and used the hand resting on Harry's shoulder to push his godson down, out of the way of the hex. "Now I want you to get out of-"
Sirius stopped talking suddenly and jumped out of the way of a jet of green light. He looked around the room. He didn't know which Death Eater had sent the Killing Curse at him, but, if he ever found out, he would kill them. The curse could have hit Harry.
Sirius turned back to his godson to make sure he was okay. Harry was okay physically, but he was staring in horror at the stairs, where Tonks' limp body was falling down the stairs. She was fine, Sirius knew. She'd just been hit with the Stunning Spell.
It wasn't hard to figure out who had hit Tonks with the Stunning Spell. Bellatrix Lestrange was standing at the foot of the stairs, looking proud of herself. She turned around and strode forward to find her next victim.
"Harry, take the prophecy, grab Neville and run," Sirius said, a sense of urgency in his voice. He needed to go help everyone else, and he couldn't do that and keep an eye on Harry at the same time.
"Very good, Bella," Sirius said sarcastically, striding toward her. "You got the better of little Tonks. What, scared to fight someone your own age?"
"What? Someone like you?" Bellatrix sneered.
"Unless you're afraid," Sirius said in an amused tone, a cocky grin on his gaunt face.
"You don't think I can win against you?" Bellatrix demanded indignantly.
"I'd like to see you try," Sirius said arrogantly.
Bellatrix raised her wand, but she had barely opened her mouth when Sirius yelled, "Stupefy!"
Bellatrix leapt out of the way of the jet of red light gracefully, keeping her wand raised. Sirius raised his own wand again, but Bellatrix had already sent a Stunning Spell at him. He avoided the jet of red light easily.
"Come on, you can do better than that!" Sirius yelled.
Bellatrix glared at Sirius, and he laughed at her. His laughter only made her more determined. She pointed her wand directly at his chest. This time she didn't miss.
His eyes widened in shock when the jet of red light hit him. He really didn't think she could win against him.
As he fell backwards slowly, Sirius saw Harry running toward him with his wand raised. No, Sirius thought. No!
Sirius may not have thought Bellatrix could win against him, but he knew she could win against Harry. No fifteen year old could ever compete with a witch with Bellatrix's skill - not even Harry, who, Sirius thought, was better at defending himself than most fifteen year olds. For the first time since he'd set foot in the Ministry, Sirius was afraid. His godson's face was the last thing Sirius saw before everything went black.
Sirius waited impatiently in his portrait in Number Twelve Grimmauld Place. His mother had taken the painting down after he ran away, but he had hung it back up, more because he knew it would annoy her than because he really liked it. Now that he was dead, he was glad that the portrait was conveniently located in the headquarters of the Order of the Phoenix. But where were the members of the Order?
Sirius wanted to know what happened after he fell through the veil. He saw his godson running towards him with his wand raised, but he didn't know what had happened after that. He didn't know if Harry was okay. He'd never felt so afraid before in his life.
Sirius used to know Bellatrix, but he didn't anymore. She'd changed. He didn't know what she was capable of now. Would she have killed Harry? Tortured him? Called Voldemort? Sirius just didn't know. Not knowing was killing him.
It felt like he'd been waiting for news for hours. Where were Lupin, Moody, and Tonks? Sirius was beginning to wonder if they were coming back. It was ten against five – four, now that Sirius was gone. Would he be the only Order member to die that night? What if the Death Eaters killed every last one of them? What would happen to Harry - if Harry was even alive?
Sirius couldn't stand it anymore. He was so desperate for news that he visited the Black Family portrait hanging above the fireplace in the sitting room of his aunt's home, albeit reluctantly. Bellatrix had inherited the house, and the Order knew she had been in hiding there ever since her escape from Azkaban. It was Bellatrix's hiding place that had given Dumbledore the idea for Sirius to hide in Number Twelve Grimmauld Place.
If the Death Eaters had killed all of the members of the Order - if Voldemort had killed Harry, Voldemort would be happy. And if Voldemort was happy, Bellatrix would be happy. Sirius knew Bellatrix would gloat. He didn't want to hear it, but he wanted to know what happened and she could tell him. That was the only reason he was there.
The sitting room was empty. Sirius was about to leave the abhorrent portrait when he heard a door slam. Bellatrix walked into the room stiffly. It looked like it hurt her to move.
"What happened to you?" Sirius asked coldly.
Bellatrix jumped in surprise at the sound of his voice and looked up at the portrait. Her gaunt face was very white.
When she got closer, Sirius could see that Bellatrix was shaking uncontrollably. Someone had used the Cruciatus Curse on her, Sirius realized. He knew none of the members of the Order would use an Unforgivable Curse. He could think of only one person who would dare use the Torture Curse on Bellatrix – Voldemort. Voldemort must not be happy with his Death Eaters. They must have done something. Something like let Harry leave with the prophecy, Sirius thought, cheering slightly.
"What happened to you?" Sirius said again, his voice slightly less harsh.
Bellatrix barely managed the few steps to the couch, where she collapsed. "The Dark Lord punished me for the fiasco at the Ministry," she muttered angrily.
"I thought you were his most loyal supporter," Sirius said, mock shocked. "Why would he punish you?"
"Potter smashed the prophecy. I tried to get the prophecy! It was not my fault! If Lucius hadn't Shielded him from my Stunning Spell…"
"Is Harry all right?" Sirius asked, his voice filled with fear. He knew how much Voldemort wanted that prophecy and how afraid his supporters were of him. What would they have done to Harry if he smashed it?
"He's alive - for now," Bellatrix said.
"What? What do you mean? Is he hurt, then?" Sirius demanded.
"No," Bellatrix said, sounding almost disappointed. "He's not hurt."
"Good," Sirius said, relaxing finally.
"I don't understand why everyone cares so much about the stupid boy!" Bellatrix cried.
"Don't call my godson stupid!" Sirius said angrily.
"Why not?" Bellatrix said loudly. "He is! He actually thinks he can win against the Dark Lord."
"What makes you think he can't?" Sirius retorted.
"Of course he can't!" Bellatrix cried. "The Dark Lord is the most powerful dark wizard who has ever existed."
"If Voldemort's so powerful," Sirius said slowly, "why can't he kill Harry?"
"The Dark Lord can kill Harry Potter - and he will," Bellatrix said confidently.
"How many times has Voldemort tried to kill Harry now?" Sirius said. "Three? Four?"
"It's not Potter," Bellatrix hissed. "Someone is always saving him. First his Mudblood mother, and now Dumbledore."
"How can you be so sure," Sirius said patronizingly, "if you don't know what the prophecy said?"
"I told you, Potter smashed the prophecy," Bellatrix said impatiently. "Now, no one will ever know what it said."
"Dumbledore heard the prophecy," Sirius told her. He knew she would hate the fact that Dumbledore knew something Voldemort didn't. He thought it would be funny to see her reaction.
"What? He did?" Bellatrix cried, unable to hide her excitement.
"Don't get so excited," Sirius said coolly. "You don't actually think I'm going to tell you what it said, do you?"
"You know?" Bellatrix said, more excited.
"Yes, but I'm not going to tell you," Sirius said. He was enjoying himself.
Bellatrix narrowed her eyes. "Tell me! Tell me or I will-"
"What, torture me?" Sirius said loudly. "You can't torture me! I'm dead!" Sirius laughed madly.
Bellatrix's face turned an angry red. She knew he was right. She couldn't do anything to him - but she could torture his friends, she realized after a moment. She smiled faintly. "No. I will torture your werewolf friend."
Sirius silently cursed himself. He'd just wanted to get a rise out of her. He hadn't even thought about what she would do if it worked.
Voldemort already knew part of what the prophecy said, but didn't know all of it. Sirius could tell Bellatrix just enough that it wouldn't give Voldemort any new information, Sirius rationalized.
"No," Sirius said quickly. "No, I'll tell you. The prophecy said that the one with the power to vanquish Voldemort was coming. He would be born to the people that had defied Voldemort three times. He would be born at the end of July."
Bellatrix already knew that. She also knew that there was more to the prophecy than that. She raised an eyebrow, stared at him expectantly.
She wasn't satisfied. He would have to give her more, or she would torture Lupin, Sirius knew. Sirius hesitated.
"It said…that Voldemort would mark him as his equal, but he would have power Voldemort didn't have," Sirius said finally. That was as much as he would tell her. He would never tell her anything that would put Harry in more danger than he was already in.
"You're lying," Bellatrix said in an accusatory tone, "and I know it. You see, Potter tried to avenge your death."
"What?" Sirius said loudly.
"When you fell through the veil, he came after me," Bellatrix told him. "The pathetic boy cannot even use the Torture Curse properly."
"Harry used an Unforgivable Curse?" Sirius choked out.
"He tried to use it," Bellatrix corrected. "And not very well, I might add. The Dark Lord used the very same curse on me no more than an hour later. So, I am quite sure that Potter does not have power the Dark Lord knows not. Now, tell me what the prophecy really said."
The Dark Lord's Cruciatus Curse had been so much more powerful than Potter's. Bellatrix knew exactly who the more powerful wizard was.
"I am telling you the truth," Sirius insisted. "That is what the prophecy said. Why else would Voldemort have gone after a baby? He wasn't about to let a boy with the power to vanquish him live. He wanted to be the most powerful wizard alive. But he's not anymore, is he? He may be able to use the Torture Curse on you, but he can't kill Harry, can he?" She had to believe him. She had tortured the Longbottoms until they lost their minds. He couldn't let her do the same to Lupin because he shot off his mouth.
"If Potter's so powerful," Bellatrix said slowly, "why hasn't he killed the Dark Lord, then?"
"He's fifteen," Sirius said. "Even you weren't killing people when you were fifteen, were you?"
"No," Bellatrix said quietly.
The more she thought about it, the more likely it seemed that Harry Potter was the one with the power to vanquish the Dark Lord. The Dark Lord had tried to kill the boy and failed too many times for it to be purely a coincidence.
Bellatrix wouldn't have been happy to hear that there was someone with the power to vanquish the Dark Lord a week ago, but she was now. She remembered the cruel smile on the Dark Lord's face as he tortured her. She couldn't wait to see Potter wipe that smile off his face. As far as she was concerned, Potter's victory over him couldn't come soon enough.
Bellatrix knew she would have to serve the Dark Lord until he was gone even though she didn't feel like helping him with anything after the way he'd treated her. How long would she have to pretend to be his faithful servant? Based on what she saw that night in the Ministry, it could be awhile. She sighed. Potter had a lot to learn before he could win against the Dark Lord.
"Who is teaching him?" Bellatrix asked abruptly.
"What?" Sirius said, frowning.
"The Potter boy," Bellatrix said impatiently. "Who is teaching him? Lessons against the Dark Lord?"
"No one," Sirius muttered. He was still angry that Snape had stopped giving Harry Occlumency lessons. He didn't understand why Dumbledore hadn't taught Harry himself. If Dumbledore had taught Harry, maybe Harry wouldn't have fallen for Voldemort's tricks.
"No one?" Bellatrix repeated. "You jest."
"I'm not," Sirius said bitterly. "Someone was supposed to be giving Harry Occlumency lessons, but that person didn't do what they were supposed to do."
"Just Occlumency?" Bellatrix said loudly, raising an eyebrow. "He's got a lot to learn if he's going to win against the Dark Lord." Her tone was almost disapproving.
"I know," Sirius said. "But the Order of the Phoenix - or at least Dumbledore - thinks he's too young." Sirius half-shrugged.
Bellatrix could tell Sirius didn't agree with the Order even though he didn't actually say it. She titled her head, considering. "I could teach him."
Sirius laughed coldly. "You, teach Harry?"
"What's so funny?" Bellatrix demanded. "I learned from the Dark Lord. I am almost as powerful as him. You didn't think I could win against you, but I did, didn't I?"
"I'm perfectly clear on how much power you have, thanks, Bella," Sirius said coldly. And he was. He thought Bellatrix was probably better at dueling than most of the Order, and he knew she'd killed more than anyone in the Order, probably more than any of the other Death Eaters. "But you don't want to teach Harry. You want to hand him to Voldemort."
"No, I don't," Bellatrix said.
"You're lying," Sirius said.
"I'm not!" Bellatrix cried. "The Dark Lord punished me! He tortured me!"
"So you're angry with your master?" Sirius sneered.
Bellatrix nodded. "Very."
Sirius gazed at her from the frame. He knew she was angry with Voldemort, but he didn't know if she would be able to stay angry with him. She didn't look away. There was a determined glint in her dark eyes.
"So you want Harry to kill him for you, do you?" Sirius said, a hard edge in his voice.
"I no longer wish to serve the Dark Lord. If I leave him now, he will kill me," Bellatrix whispered.
Sirius nodded slowly. He knew she would hate serving a master who had tortured her. He also knew she could teach Harry things that no one else could - or would. "I think it would be a good idea for you to give Harry lessons against Voldemort," he said finally.
Bellatrix stared at him, her eyes wide in shock. "You do?" She'd been trying to convince him, but she didn't think it would be that easy.
"Yeah, I do," Sirius said. "Voldemort wants to kill him, so I think these lessons are a very good idea."