Chapter 3

Sirius felt a swift, sharp kick in his right side, then bolted awake to see Rodolphus Lestrange standing over him.

"WHAT MAKES YOU THINK YOU HAVE THE RIGHT TO THAT BLANKET!" he demanded, snatching it away.

Sirius shrugged. "You threw it down here," he said, matter-of-factly. "I assumed it was all right for me to use it."

"BUT WE THREW IT OUT OF YOUR REACH…"

"You thought you did," Sirius replied, struggling to remain calm. "But I was able to reach it just fine…with my feet."

"Oh, let him have the dammed thing!" Bellatrix snapped, staggering down the stairs with a silver dog bowl in her hands, which she placed on the floor in front of him.

"I've brought you some breakfast!" she cackled, ruffling his hair. "Eat it up, now...such a good doggie…good doggie!"

So…now she was feeding him dog food and was amused by her own cleverness. Admittedly, so was he, although from his perspective the humor lay in her oversight. She'd been in Azkaban herself…compared to the slop they served, dog food was an absolute treat. And he knew her well enough to realize that if he played his cards right, he might have a bit of fun at her expense.

"Aren't you going to unchain me, Cousin?" he asked.

"No!" she quipped. "Eat it on all fours, like the cur that you are!"

"Enlighten me," he said sarcastically. "How can I eat it on all fours with my hands chained behind my back?"

"Hmmm…you do have a point," she drawled lazily, then she did as he asked. "Now EAT IT!" she shrieked.

She dropped her mouth in disbelief as he did exactly as she demanded.

"You…you're actually DOING it?" she spat, horrified.

Sirius looked up at her. Gravy was dripping from his moustache and beard, and he was trying not to laugh at the revulsion on her face.

"I've eaten worse," he said matter-of-factly. "And so have you. I can eat rats if I have to."

With that, Bellatrix ran shrieking up the stairs. He continued to eat, while Rodolphus looked on, disgusted.

The next few days were uneventful. His captors were merciful enough to lead him out of the cellar whenever he needed to use the bathroom, because (and only because) Lucius made it very clear that he didn't want him soiling his basement. But Lucius ordered Macnair to stand watch outside the door and Rodolphus to remain inside while Sirius was conducted his business, for fear he might attempt to escape.

On the first trip, Rodolphus had stood facing him, but turned away, embarrassed, after Sirius had asked him if he wanted to watch. He continued to turn his back on him after that, much to Sirius' relief. He doubted he'd have been that lucky with Macnair.

They stopped chaining his hands behind his back, but still kept them shackled in front of him, with enough length to where he could eat and sleep. That much, at least, was an improvement.

He continuously tried to master wandless magic. He wasn't making progress as quickly as he liked, but he did win small victories, whether it was making his chains rattle a bit or making a nearby pebble skip a few inches across the stone cold floor.

He had to keep it up. He knew it was only a matter of time before Voldemort returned, and once he did, he'd be sure he'd use him to lure Harry into a trap. Sirius wasn't concerned for himself, but he was very frightened for Harry.

Those few hours of freedom had certainly come at a price. If he'd had it to do over again, would he?

No. But only because he now knew the outcome in advance.

After about three days, he overheard the sound of keys rattling in the lock. "Just WAIT till you see!" Bellatrix cackled. "You're going to LOVE it!"

Sirius' stomach churned. He hoped it wasn't the Dark Lord. He still had too many things to master.

But it wasn't the Dark Lord. It was Snape, carrying that filthy rat Peter in a cage. Bellatrix followed, laughing insanely as she staggered behind him.

"Well well," Snape said slowly. "What have we here?"

"Caught him myself!" Bellatrix boasted, as Sirius snorted. "Well, Lucius helped…some."

"I must say you've completely outdone yourself, Bellatrix," Snape said sardonically. "Although I'm surprised Black was even brave enough to slither out of his little hidey-hole."

"At least I have a hole to slither into," Sirius retorted. "Which is more than I can say for you."

Snape's black eyes flashed and narrowed, and his sallow skin paled. "Bellatrix, why don't you take the rat upstairs and dangle him in front of Nagini?" he said. "I'd like a moment or two alone with our guest, if you don't mind."

Bellatrix was only too happy to oblige. Sirius wondered if Snape planned to curse him, kick him, or spit on him, but to his surprise, he did none of them. He simply knelt beside him, and began to speak; slowly, softly, and articulately:

"Your stupidity truly amazes me, Black! If you had any sense at all in that thick skull of yours, you'd realize that I'm probably the only person who can get you out of your little predicament! But since you don't, I think its only fair to let you know that you've completely ruined what may well have been your only chance!"

With that, Snape left, his cloak billowing behind him as he climbed the stairs.

Sirius refused to admit it, even to himself, but he had a sinking feeling Snape was right. But…he wasn't about to plead for mercy from anyone; least of all Snape.

He would still escape before Voldemort returned…one way, or another.

The hours and days drug on, and eventually a week had passed. Mulciber and Macnair took turns guarding the door to the cellar; Rodolphus and Pettigrew took turns bringing Sirius his food. Other than that, and the occasional visits to torment him, the Death Eaters left him alone.

Sirius spent most of his waking hours plotting his escape. He had tried, unsuccessfully, to free himself with wandless magic, so instead he focused on a loose, rusty nail on the cellar floor. If he could draw it near enough, he might be able to use it to pick the locks of his bonds…

But…the nail was much further away than the blanket had been, so getting it in his hands was a challenge.

"Accio Nail," he whispered, focusing his energy.

Nothing.

"Accio nail," he whispered again.

Again, nothing.

"Accio nail!"

He kept on trying for several days, into the evenings and long into the nights. Finally, he felt a little surge of energy as the nail inched closer.

"Accio nail!"

It moved again.

"Accio nail!"

Finally, the nail was within his reach. Sirius grasped it and picked the locks on the shackles around his wrists and his ankles. When they were off, he went to work on the collar...

That one was a bitch! Not only because the keyhole was in back, but because every time he tried to spring the lock, the collar began to glow…then burn, like the coils on a stove. Despite the pain, Sirius wouldn't…couldn't give up! Not now, not with so much at stake…

Finally, the lock snapped and the collar opened, but not before his hands, fingers, and neck were painfully blistered.

Sirius arranged the bonds in a way that would convince his captors that he was still securely chained, then sat with his back against the wall and waited. Since Rodolphus had brought his food last night, he thought that Peter would most likely bring it this morning. A good thing, really, since Peter had always been easy to fool…

Stupid rat!

Briefly, he closed his eyes, trying to conserve his energy for when he made his break. He wished he had something to cool the burns on his fingers and his neck, but that would have to wait. Perhaps this was a good thing. As long as there was pain, he wouldn't get comfortable enough to doze...which was something he could not afford to do!

As predicted, Peter came at dawn. Sirius pretended to be sleeping, but watched him out of the corner of his eye. Carefully, Peter put the bowl down, and tried not to make a sound as he crept backwards…

He turned, and Sirius tackled him, wrestling his wand from his hand. Not a difficult feat.

"STUPIFY!" he shouted. Peter flew across the cellar into the stone wall, then slithered to the floor, unconscious.

Sirius snatched the key ring, gave Peter a departing kick, and flew up the stairs. He tried several keys in the lock, to no avail. Then he heard rattling on the other side of the door, and knew either Mulciber or Macnair was on to him.

He stepped backwards and shouted, "BOMBARDA MAXIMA!"

There was a BLAST!-then a hole, and a big pile of rubbish, which rumbled as something beneath it groaned and stirred. Sirius scrambled over it and bolted to the front entrance. Upstairs, people were shouting and slamming doors…

"BOMBARDA MAXIMA!"

The tall, heavy doors blew down. Sirius ran, then apparated after turning his head and seeing Lucius and Rodolphus pursuing him. He got to the outskirts of London, then apparated again. He got bit further, but splinched himself, leaving a shallow crevice the width of a snitch in his right side. Bleeding and in pain, he struggled to stand…

"STUPIFY!"

Sirius gasped, hitting the ground. He heard shouting…loud footsteps…then the old familiar sneer:

"I must admit you've outdone yourself, Black," Lucius chuckled derisively. "You've destroyed my property and eluded my grasp, but did you honestly believe that you could escape us? That your actions would go…unpunished…when I've stressed to you on so many occasions that you simply cannot win against the big boys…IMPERIO!"

Sirius was unable to fight, unable to move, as Rodolphus chained his wrists behind his back. They jerked him to his feet, dug their nails into his forearms, then apparated with him back to Malfoy Manor…

Rodolphus ripped the shirt off of Sirius' back, which he used to blindfold him. Then Sirius felt himself being slammed forward into a wall and forced to his knees. He heard the clatter of metal as they removed the bonds from his wrists, raised his hands above his head, and then replaced them with another set of irons. They then shackled his ankles.

"VENTILIBUS SURSUM!" Rodolphus shouted.

Sirius felt a sharp crack in his shoulders and realized he was being hoisted upwards. He threw his head backwards, gritting his teeth as his chest and stomach were scraped against the abrasive stone wall. Then he heard Rodolphus call for the others…

"OH GOODY! IT'S TIME TO PLAY!" Bellatrix screeched, skipping down the stairs. And then Lucius was cracking his whips, quite loudly, as if he was trying to decide which one to use…

"RESARÉ!" Rodolphus shouted.

Sirius heard a click, then fell to the floor. The Death Eaters descended on him like dementors, pulling him upright and again chaining his wrists behind him. He felt somebody spinning him, then heard their footsteps as they circled around him. They then engaged him in a form of blind man's bluff, but in their version, the object was for Sirius to avoid getting hit by either their whips or their spell-namely, the Cruciatus Curse. And he was expected to stay on his feet at all times…or suffer the consequences.

Sirius failed, more than once, but vowed to maintain his silence. Stubbornly, he bit his lip, a technique he had employed whenever Orion used to punish him. But Orion had never used curses, and had never hit him with anything more lethal than his own belt. The whips he could tolerate, even though they stung like scorpions as they ripped into his flesh. But the second time they hit him with the Cruciatus Curse he found he could no longer choke back his screams. By the third time, he was howling…at the top of his lungs…in anger as much as pain. It was the only release he had.

Sirius didn't remember how many times they struck him, with the whips or with the curse. But…for some strange reason, the pain was over long before they stopped.

He felt himself floating…could see them rolling him over while they poured something wet on his lacerated back. Everything faded to gray…and then finally, to black.

(This chapter was particularly difficult for me to write. Those of you who know how I feel about Sirius will understand why. So, you ask, why do I do it? The reason is threefold. First, I've always felt the guy went through a certain amount of hell, and because his creator won't elaborate on it, my imagination sometimes runs wild. Second, for some reason unbeknownst even to me, I feel the need to understand his pain on a deeper level, which I attempt to do through my writing. And third: as any writer knows, anytime that a plot bunny appears, whether its in a dream or whatever, the only thing you really can do is follow him down the rabbit hole, no matter where that leads you.

Within the next week or two, I'm going to combine the first six chapters of this fic into three chapters, since they're all particularly short. I'll post the next chapter after I edit it, which might take a week or two. This one will be much longer…and darker).