Disclaimer: None of the characters in Harry Potter are mine. They belong to J.K. Rowling, and as I'm sitting at a desk writing fan fiction, I don't believe I'm a wealthy millionaire. I'm also NOT making money from this, as if that wasn't already obvious. ;-)

A/N: This first part is not from Harry's P.O.V. because I couldn't think of a good way to explain it that way. It switches back to Harry's point of view.. but I'm not going to announce it happening. There is a line break there. I don't think it's all that confusing.

Harry groaned in his sleep.

Bellatrix and Narcissa had conjured chairs to sit in. They were silently arguing about Lucius and Harry, when they both stopped and looked to the bed. Neither had noticed the boy falling asleep as they were hardly even aware of the fact that he was still in their care. Both women remained silent as his groans continued and he began to shout in his sleep.

"No! Get away from me!"

They watched as he twitched. Bellatrix lowered her hood for the first time that evening. As his body curled into itself, a nasty grin grew on her face and she watched with interest.

"GET AWAY!"

Bellatrix jumped up. Narcissa watched, curious about what she would do, but her sister didn't seem to notice she had moved: she continued to watch Harry with a fascinated look.

"Don't, please! Please!"

Seemingly coming out of her trance-like state, Bellatrix turned to her sister. "Is he dreaming about the Dark Lord, do you think?" Narcissa shrugged. It wasn't as if she could see into the boy's head.

"Get away from me, Malfoy!"

Bellatrix's grin grew while Narcissa's eyes widened in surprise. "What on earth--"

"Think this has to do with our Lord's disappointment in your dear Lucius?" Bellatrix was nearly hysterical with glee as she interrupted her sister. Narcissa answered by giving her a dirty look, but didn't give her sister the satisfaction of reprimanding her for taking enjoyment in whatever Lucius had done to displease the Dark Lord.

Together, they crept closer toward Harry, Bellatrix with a tight grip on her wand.

As they closed in on him, close enough to reach out and touch him, he cried out once more.

"You sick fuck--" and with that he kicked out. His sudden movement caught both women off guard, but Narcissa had missed the brunt of his unexpected attack. Bellatrix, however, had not been so lucky. She had leant down with her wand drawn out toward him, presumably to torture him for her own entertainment, and was kicked in the neck. Her wand flew out of her hand as she clutched at her neck and cursed.

Narcissa set a hand on her sister's shoulder and started to speak but was pushed away.

I sat up, awakened by my feet coming into contact with something, and rubbed at my eyes.

What a nightmare.

I lowered my hands to find Mrs. Malfoy giving me a cautious look. She turned as our eyes met and faced a woman who I hadn't noticed before. Once again, I found myself at the wrong end of a drawn wand.

This woman had long tangled black hair that wrapped around her thin frame. Her heavy-lidded eyes almost made her gaunt face appear corpse-like; violet eyes shining with a maniacal glint. She had one arm wrapped around her wand and the other cradling her neck. I didn't have to ask her name.

Bellatrix Lestrange.

My curiosity peaked, not because I realized that this woman was set the task of helping Mrs. Malfoy explain and teach me, but because I'd seen her before. She was the young dark-haired girl I'd seen the only time I'd managed to catch a glimpse of Mrs. Malfoy's memories. Of course, she was now many years older and wasn't nearly as beautiful as she had once been. Well, this explained things. Bellatrix and Narcissa were related – more than likely they were sisters because they had once lived together.

It occurred to me that the reason she was holding her neck was because I had kicked her. I rubbed my own neck and muttered an apology. She mumbled curse words under her breath. Relief washed over me as she lowered her wand.

I lowered my head. A mixture of disgust at the dream and guilt was washing over me with the recollection of what I had done earlier. The queasy feeling was returning to me. I jumped off the bed and bolted for the toilet, emptying the contents of my stomach inside moments later. As I finish retching, I tried to spit the nasty taste from my mouth, but it didn't help much. I slowly steadied myself and walked back into the small bedroom. I was able to ignore both women until I reached the bed where I could no longer avoid whatever would come next.

"Aw, did wittle baby Potter have a nightmare about Lucius Malfoy!?" I watched Mrs. Malfoy spin quickly with some kind of retort, but I never heard it because I cut her off.

"Shut up! You have no idea- you don't know what you're talking about!" Rage and an instant dislike for this woman quickly consumed me. I would have liked nothing more than to make her shut up...

Her expression changed from the mad mocking one she had moments before, but not to an angry expression. She was simply amused. She stepped up right next to me and traced her finger down my shoulder, curving her nail so that by the time it reached my elbow she was cutting into my skin and drawing blood. I flinched and tried to back away, but she quickly grabbed my arm and pulled me closer.

She closed the few inches between us, pressing herself against me-

What the hell?

For an absurd second, I almost thought she was going to bite me, or worse yet, kiss me. However, she just drew her mouth by my ear and whispered softly enough that it wasn't heard by Mrs. Malfoy, "Don't worry, Potter. If I was dreaming about Malfoy, I'd be in there retching myself." She drew back with a snooty grin and sat on the bed twirling her wand.

I could feel my heart beating quick against my chest as I watched her. My head began to ache as a rush of emotions swam through my head: anger, amusement, interest, and a brief sense of something I couldn't quite identify. I felt as if I'd just lost something.

The awkwardness of being in their company settled in me and I turned my attention to the floor. A thought occurred to me... weren't they supposed to be answering my questions?

"Erm, what's a life debt? I mean, how does it work?" Both women stared at me as if I were stupid. Finally, Mrs. Malfoy began to explain.

"You saved my life, didn't you? You stopped the Dark Lord from murdering me. I - Therefore I owe you my life."

"But what does that mean?"

"It means she'll either have to somehow save yours in return - either by sacrificing her own life or by somehow saving you from a dangerous situation." Bellatrix had stopped twirling her wand and was seemingly looking through me. "In other words, you've only held her death out until later, because you're a bumbling moron who apparently feeds off placing yourself and others around you in danger."

Ignoring her jibe, I tried to process what she was telling me. Mrs. Malfoy had made a disapproving tittering sound when Bellatrix had made my saving her sound as if I were supposedly prolonging her miserable death.

Wait! I saved Peter Pettigrew's life in nearly the same way! I stopped Remus and Sirius from killing him as well...

"I saved Peter Pettigrew too! I stopped Remus and Sirius from killing him in the Shrieking Shack... does he owe me a life debt as well?"

I hadn't noticed while I was talking, but both women were looking at me oddly. Mrs. Malfoy was the first to come back to herself, but Bellatrix once again interrupted anything she might have said, "Don't mention that blood traitor or the half-breed again!"

"I- what are you, I didn't--"

"Don't mention the names Sirius Black or Remus Lupin ever again. As for your question," Mrs. Malfoy paused for a second as she sat herself beside Bellatrix on the bed. "Pettigrew has already paid his debt to you."

I was getting ready to argue that Professor Lupin was a wonderful man and that Sirius was my godfather, but her answer shocked me.

"What? How?"

"No one was able to explain how two young teenagers managed to escape a horde of dementors when not even Black," she stopped and returned the glare Bellatrix was giving her, "When not even Black managed to escape them unscathed."

"They were only trailing Sirius though, not me and Hermione!"

"Dementors feed off emotions. If they were desperate enough, they'd have chased after Fudge himself, never mind you and your little mudblood friend."

I gave Mrs. Malfoy a dirty look. "Don't call her that! She is not a mudblood!"

"Draco's told me her parents are muggles. You have proof otherwise?"

"Oh, because precious Draco told you," I sneered. "Her parents are muggles, but that doesn't matter. She's absolutely brilliant, has top marks in everything. She's got better marks than Draco!"

"How dare you! My son is not beneath a lowly mudblood!"

I laughed. Was she really this stupid? How could she possibly not know?

"Well, hate to say it, but obviously your darling son is lying to you!"

She stood from the bed, "You dare accuse my son of lying to me?" She had the maniac look about her again, the same that I'd seen when I was chained in the dungeon or cellar, wherever I was being kept.

"You know a bit of Legilimency! Why don't you just question him yourself?" She started to retort and then shut her mouth, muttering that she'd be doing just that.

Bellatrix, who'd been watching our row with amused interested, smirked. "Well, if he's anything like his father, I wouldn't doubt that he'd be dumb enough to get lower marks than a mudblood and then lie to your face. What a disgrace!"

Mrs. Malfoy spun to face her, yelling, "You shut up about my husband and son!" She crossed her arms and glared daggers at her sister.

I rolled my eyes and whispered, "Yes, Merlin forbid we talk about your saintly family. What a load of rubbish!" She turned to give me the same look, but Bellatrix was giving me an appreciative look.

"Aw, perhaps ickle Potter isn't so bad for a filthy halfblood!" She snickered to herself and then turned slightly more serious. "Of course, you have much to improve on, like your disrespect problem and manners toward the Dark Lord!"

"What? Respect the man who killed my parents?! Show respect for the man who has already tried to kill me at least twice? Properly grovel on my knees to the man who nearly killed your sister! Are you bloody insane?"

She flicked her wand and pain ripped across my left cheek. I raised my hand to finger a gash and put them back at my side covered in blood. The bleeding wasn't life threatening so it basically went ignored. Well, at least I knew I'd been right in assuming they were sisters.

"The Dark Lord deserves every ounce of respect he gets! You're going to learn to properly respect him, or you'll be killed!"

Mrs. Malfoy was also glaring at me. "I can't believe this! You're still sticking up for a man that was going to kill you for no fucking reason? You're both mental!"

She stood and walked next to me, as her sister had done earlier, and whispered into my ear quietly enough for Bellatrix not to hear, "Not respecting the Dark Lord will only get you killed. Do you really think I have any respect for a man that is constantly placing my family in danger? If your smart, you'll shut your mouth, because everything you say will go straight back to him through Bellatrix! I do what I must to keep my family safe!"

Bellatrix had indeed edged closer to hear what her sister was telling me. Mrs. Malfoy stepped back and scolded me, "And do not use such foul language in my presence again!" She stepped further back, a nervous look on her face. So, she didn't really care for Voldemort? It doesn't seem very likely. Perhaps she was just telling me that to shut me up, but then why look so nervous? Maybe she figured she'd told me a lot more than she ever should have?

The awkward silence from earlier stole over the room once more. Finally, I broke the peace.

"So, you're saying Pettigrew saved us from the dementors? He can cast a Patronus?"

"He can, yes. He is one of the only Death Eaters who is capable of casting one. He knew that he owed you a life debt, and ran into the forest only far enough to get away from Black and Lupin. He was watching you, I suppose, because some portion of his idiotic brain told him you might be useful." She fingered the hem of her robes as she sighed, "I suppose he got lucky enough to actually figure right. He was able to hold the dementors long enough to get you and the girl out."

So, I was only alive now because the man who had betrayed my parents saved my life.

"Why did he bother saving Hermione? He didn't stop to save Sirius - Hermione is 'the mudblood'..."

Bellatrix made a growling sound in the back of her throat. I looked to Mrs. Malfoy waiting for an answer. "Black was a threat to him and to the cause. A small threat, but a threat nonetheless. Pettigrew knew it was better to have him out of the way. As for your friend, I have no bloody idea."

I frowned. Why would he bother saving her if he felt she was beneath him? He didn't owe her anything. It didn't make sense, but I knew I wasn't going to get an answer from them. He must have snuck us in under my cloak, because Dumbledore had found it just outside Hogwarts doors deserted on the steps.

"Where did he go after dumping us in the Entrance Hall?"

"In search of the Dark Lord. Once he found him, he told him of saving you and they began formulating a plan to capture you. They dragged Lucius into the ordeal, because he is friendly with the Minister, and with some persuasion they were able to track down your address during the summer." She stopped, watching me as I frowned again, before continuing, "Dumbledore must have had protection placed around the house, because they couldn't cross in to get you. Together, Peter and Lucius watched your house and waited until you came out. Once you were clear of the house, at the park, they seized their chance and took you."

"I never saw them! They couldn't have been--"

Bellatrix broke her silence. "Think Potter, surely you didn't expect them to just show up without a disguise so you could see and run off to Dumbledore! They were Polyjuiced as muggles. Since you weren't expecting an attack, it was quite easy to sneak up behind you and steal you away."

Oh.

"But Lucius wasn't around when Vo- when the Dark Lord was brought back to his own body! I- they used my blood to bring him back..."

Bellatrix raised an eyebrow, hissing, "Your blood runs through the Dark Lord's veins?" I nodded, confusion still filling me up.

"Lucius was ordered not to be there because he wasn't needed. The Dark Lord, rather than try to kill you, remembered information another had passed to him before you were even born. This is the reason he still needs you. There was a prophecy made about him and a boy, a boy he believes is you, and he didn't hear all of it." My eyebrows shot up as I stared unbelieving at Mrs. Malfoy.

A prophecy? I'd seen Trelawney in an odd state sprouting off about Voldemort rising back to power. It had all come true, hadn't it? Pettigrew escaped and Voldemort was back. I'd forgotten to mention it to Dumbledore... I hit myself in the head once more. How could I have been so stupid? If I'd told Dumbledore, I'm sure things would have been different. Perhaps he could have prevented this or changed it around somehow. I'd been too distraught about losing my godfather - my chance to finally be rid of the Dursleys - that I'd completely forgotten… So, there was another prophecy, one made about me.

"Why can't he get it? Or send someone else too?"

Bellatrix scoffed, "You expect the Dark Lord to prance into the Ministry of Magic? To give away that he has returned to power? Are you mad?" I shrugged. It was certainly beginning to feel that way.

"Then why not have someone else get it? Why me?"

Neither of them had an answer. They both simply waved off this question.

"So, what, I get this prophecy and then he kills me off?"

"Perhaps," I grimaced before Bellatrix said, "but it all depends on what the prophecy says. He may still have use for you."

I walked over and joined them on the bed. Bellatrix jumped up and walked over to the door.

"I've got to get back. I'll be back around later Cissy." I watched her walk out the door. She was truly an odd woman. One moment, she was hysterical and crazy. The next, she seemed to calm down, even appearing lucid. That still didn't mean I necessarily liked her. I could hear her locking it from the outside. What would that matter though if Mrs. Malfoy still had her wand?

"Why is she bothering? Don't you still have your wand?" Mrs. Malfoy chose not to answer. She threw herself back. She was now lying on the bed staring up at the canopy as I had done earlier. I sat and stared at the wall. Now that I finally had some answers, a wave of nausea was washing over me once more. I racked my brains trying to find something else to ask, something to keep my mind preoccupied from disgust and remorse, finally settling on a question.

"What do you have against Sirius and Remus?" She turned her head to look at me but didn't answer for several minutes.

"Sirius is- he- Remus is a werewolf," I nodded. I'd known that for a few months now. "It's disgusting. He's nothing but a half-breed. He doesn't deserve to live." Why couldn't she talk about Sirius?

I glowered at her. "Remus is a great man! He's incredibly smart and loyal to his friends. He's a wonderful Defense professor as well, the only competent one we've had at Hogwarts yet. He can't help that he got bit," a thought occurred to me. Maybe this would help her see, "What if Draco had gotten bit? Would you say he doesn't deserve to live?"

She propped herself on her elbow. "Draco would never be in the position to be bitten in the first place!"

"But say he was, he snuck off and got himself bitten, you'd just cast him off? Would you have him killed?"

Rage filled her face. There was an accusing look - how dare you accuse me of not caring for my son. "Of course not! He's my son! I'd never - I could never!"

"Remus is someone's son as well. He's the same as you and me, a normal person, who just happens to turn at the full moon. He'd never attack someone on purpose! And I'll have you know, he takes the Wolfsbane Potion when he can, and even when he can't he locks himself away from others." Did she understand anything I was saying? "You say you'd never kill off your son, but your prejudice is against werewolves - half-breeds - so what would stop you? He'd be a monster wouldn't he?"

She cried out in frustration, "He'd still be my son! I love my son and nothing, nothing, would ever provoke me to kill my own child."

"I'd hope not. I'm just trying to say that nothing is wrong with Remus Lupin and you shouldn't be so quick to judge... Especially given your own recent fall from grace." She lunged at me. Her nails scratched across my face, one deepening the gash her sister had caused earlier, and she wrapped her hands around my neck. She was simultaneously straddling me and strangling the life from me. I was beginning to feel lightheaded.

"You horrible little excuse for a human being! Don't you ever dare speak to me that way again!" Just as I was sure that she'd strangle me to death, she dropped her hands from my neck to my shoulders. I gasped and sputtered trying to catch my breath. She was breathing heavy as well, a result of using all her remaining energy trying to kill me.

I shifted uncomfortably underneath her. Was she going to get off me anytime today? She slid her hands down my shoulders, across my chest, and down my stomach before pulling herself into a sitting position on top of me. I coughed, hopeful that it would make her realize she was still sitting on me, but it had no effect. "Erm, as much as I appreciate you nearly strangling me to death, do you mind getting off me?" She gave me a weird look, as if she didn't know what I was talking about, before looking down. A dawning sense of horror leapt on her face and she flung herself off of me.

"Geez, Cissy." She scowled at me and moved over to the pillow lying down. I rolled my eyes.

"Don't call me that! I hate it when Bella calls me that!" She sat fuming for a few minutes. I decided I was going to call her that from now on. "What did Lucius do to you?"

I turned away from her. Why did she need to know?

"What do you think he did?" Her eyebrows creased momentarily as she sat thinking.

"I don't know. I haven't been able to figure out what he possibly could have done..." She trailed off, giving me a look that clearly meant she was expecting an answer.

I knew she was going to do it before she moved for her wand, but there wasn't anything I could do other than try to keep her out.

"Legilimens!"

I tried to keep her out, tried to block my mind off, to think of something else. As much as I tried, and I was really trying, I couldn't block her from the images of what her husband had done.

She pulled out of my mind quickly, a look of disgusted horror written all over her face. Her grey eyes almost held what looked like concern and she turned to me with what I could only assume was sympathy.

"Merlin," and she shut her mouth, not sure what else she could possibly say.

A/N: MMmmk. There is the latest. It's a bit later - and shorter- than I wanted it to be.. but it's here. I know I didn't mention anything about Harry using the Unforgivable on Narcissa.. but it'll be mentioned eventually.. probably next chapter.

Thank's for reading.. hopefully I'll have the next chapter out soon.. I've been feeling less motivated about it since DH.. I keep wanting to start plots off of that... I did write a small oneshot. But don't worry, I'm not abandoning this anytime soon. However, updates will probably be slower in a few weeks time due to the new semester starting.. eugh.

EDIT: As of today, 8-5-07, I've gone back in and cleaned things up a bit. I've slightly changed the prologue and edited small things I didn't catch before in other chapters. I'm too impatient for a beta, so there are probably more of them.. a ton I'm sure. Also, I've combined chapters 2 and 3 because I felt it was stupid for them to be seperate.

Thanks, again, for reading.. ;-)