Chapter 13
The door burst open. Mulciber seized Draco's arm and dragged him inside.
"Eavesdropping!" yelled Mucliber.
"I wouldn't consider it eavesdropping," said Crouch calmly. "Draco was merely listening in on our conversation."
"You do realize that that's the definition of eavesdropping, Barty," snapped Bellatrix. "And why are you trying to defend…"
"I'm not trying to defend anyone, Bellatrix," said Crouch. "I would just like to point out that you did ask Draco to come here for his training, and it is our fault that we didn't answer the door when he knocked to come in. I believe you did knock, didn't you, Draco?"
Draco nodded. Mulciber was still gripping Draco's arm so tightly that it hurt.
"It is therefore our fault, Bellatrix," continued Crouch. "That Draco heard part of our conversation."
Bellatrix scowled at Crouch and said, "I think that I can take care of his training by myself today."
Crouch shrugged. "Very well," he said. "I do not have a strong desire to train the Amazing Bouncing Ferret anyway. I spent a whole year teaching him once, and I think I've had enough."
He left the room followed by Mulciber. Avery limped after them.
"One month," Mulciber muttered to Crouch and Avery. "I give it one month until you have to go find this one's body, Barty. Draco couldn't be discreet if his life depended on it, and the Dark Lord expects him to spy for us at Hogwarts? He'll be dead by the time he steps onto the Hogwarts Express. What a nice surprise Lucius will have to come back to once he escapes Azkaban!"
The door closed behind them, leaving Draco and Bellatrix alone.
"You're late," snapped Bellatrix.
"I know," murmured Draco. "I'm sorry, ma'am."
"Are you going to be late if the Dark Lord calls you?" demanded Bellatrix.
"No, ma'am," replied Draco softly.
"You'd better not be!" said Bellatrix. "Now, do you have your wand, or are you so careless that you forgot it upstairs?"
"I have it," said Draco, holding up his wand.
"Now, let's begin with something basic," said Bellatrix. "Can you tell me the names of the three Unforgivable Curses?"
"The Imperius Curse, The Cruciatus Curse and the Killing Curse," said Draco. He had heard his family mention the Unforgivable Curses so often that he could recite them without even thinking about what he was saying.
"Tell me the incantations," ordered Bellatrix.
"Imperio, Crucio, and Avada Kedavra," said Draco.
"Now, onto the more difficult part," said Bellatrix. "Let's see if you can perform these curses. I assume that your father never taught you the Dark Arts?"
"No," Draco murmured. He hoped that Bellatrix wouldn't talk too much about his father.
"Just as I thought," Bellatrix muttered to herself. "Someone like Lucius can't even teach their son some basic curses. Very well; we'll start from the beginning." She turned back to Draco.
"We'll start with the Cruciatus Curse," she said. "When performing the Cruciatus Curse, you must focus on causing pain. Think about how much you want to hurt your opponent."
Draco stared at the floor. Bellatrix picked up a small jar. Inside it were a few insects.
"Scarab beetles," said Bellatrix. "They can be used in a few potions, but these will serve a different purpose today. Unfortunately, we do not have any humans to practice the Cruciatus Curse on at the moment. It isn't the same performing it on insects, but it'll be a start."
She dumped the beetles out of the jar, pointed her wand at one of them, and muttered, "Engorgio."
Instantly, the beetle grew four times its normal size. She turned to Draco and said, "Watch me."
Draco knew what she was going to do and he did not want to see the Cruciatus Curse performed on anything, even an insect. He nodded at her, but as soon as she said the incantation, he looked down at the floor instead of at the beetle. Beetles can't scream, but Draco knew that it was writhing in pain at the moment.
"You're not watching me!" Bellatrix shouted at him after a while.
Draco looked up at her and said in a voice that was barely audible, "I don't want to see the Cruciatus Curse used on anything."
"Speak up, Draco!" demanded Bellatrix.
Now Draco was wishing that he hadn't said anything. He knew that his aunt was not going to like hearing him protest in any way. He gulped and said slightly louder, "I don't think that I want to see the Cruciatus Curse performed on the beetle."
Without warning, Bellatrix struck Draco hard across the face. He winced and stumbled backwards a little.
"I cannot believe that any nephew of mine could be so weak," she shrieked. "Yesterday, you refused to let me interrogate a filthy half-blood Auror and you disgraced this family by making us seem like a bunch of Order-sympathizing blood-traitors!"
"I'm sorry," murmured Draco. "I just felt a little sorry for Tonks…"
Bellatrix slapped him again and he decided that it would be best if he just kept quiet. He had had no idea that what he had said would make her so furious.
"And today," Bellatrix continued, looking at him with contempt. "You can't even bare to see the Cruciatus Curse used on a beetle… and are you telling me that you actually sympathized with her? Are you going to become a blood-traitor like your other aunt and disgrace this family farther? How am I supposed to teach you how to be a Death Eater when you can't even stand to witness the use of an Unforgivable Curse? How am…"
The door opened and Narcissa came in.
"What happened?" she asked, sounding alarmed.
"Your son has been resisting my methods of training!" screamed Bellatrix. "I don't know whether I can possibly teach him anything if he won't even watch me perform the Cruciatus Curse on an animal!"
"Bella, please!" said Narcissa. "He just isn't used to seeing the Unforgivable Curse…"
"He had one used on him yesterday due to his carelessness yesterday!" shouted Bellatrix.
"Well," Narcissa said, coldly. "Maybe that's why he doesn't want to see the Cruciatus Curse used, and he was not 'careless', Bella. People older than him have been captured by the Order and…"
"But he probably didn't even put up a good fight!" shrieked Bellatrix. "Stop making excuses for him. He is a shame to this family, Cissy…"
"Don't you dare call my son a shame…" started Narcissa, but Bellatrix was heading towards the door.
"He sympathizes with the Order!" yelled Bellatrix. "I am not going to put up with training someone who is so pathetic and is a blood-traitor on top of it!"
"Bella, please! He's your nephew!" pleaded Narcissa, but Bellatrix had stormed out of the room.