summary: Azkaban just gets to you.
disclaimer: insert disclaimer here.
prefic: I honestly should be studying, but you know how fics can plague you.
warning: Pointless little piece; not particularly fantastic.


Bring Out Your Dead
or, Who's Tom Riddle?

You forget a lot of things in Azkaban.

There's something that seeps into your thoughts, a mindless, black, lightless thing, the texture of milk.

You're all right for a few days. You still feel more fear when a Dementor draws near. You still feel relief when it move away. There's still a difference.

But then one day everything turns monotone.

You're worse than dead then.


(Have you ever wondered how Dementors came to be?)


Bellatrix looks at the bright side of things.

That is to say, she doesn't look at anything at all.

Her eyes have been covered with a grey film, they aren't bright vivacious green, like how they were before.

Her husband once told her, It's your eyes. You have the most amazing eyes.

Do you think that he'd still love her, even now when her eyes aren't beautiful anymore?


(Do you think that they might have been human once?)


Lucius gets visits from Narcissa.

They sit and look at each other.

Narcissa notices his hair, once so neat and properly washed, is now falling in locks about his face. His face is even sharper than before.

Narcissa notices his lips are dry and peeling, and seem to be constantly drawn thin.

Narcissa notices Lucius doesn't notice anything.

She touches his hand, and he doesn't move.

She thinks about a few months ago.

Screaming, Even you in Azkaban would be better than the way you are now!

She thinks maybe it isn't true.

Maybe Lucius pulling away at her touch would be better than him not moving.


(Do you think they might have been tricked in some way?)


(Deceived by someone?)


(Followed the wrong god home?)


Dumbledore visits Azkaban at least once a year.

He goes to see people he once knew.

People he'd once taught.

People he'd once had the chance to shape, people who never, really never should have ended up in this place.

He looks at them and imagines them as students, walking down the halls of Hogwarts, and all the weight that is on their backs are the books they are carrying and next weeks' tests.

Nothing more.

And then one day everything turns monotone--


(Do you think they might have been human once?)



END./ 5Oct03.

exit: um. Well. I prefer the idea of Dementors being named Johnny and Lars and Trevor, and having an Azkaban Tourism Board, and a Dementor receptionist who has the nerve to not voluntarily give Narcissa Malfoy and her young master son an escort to go visit Lucius Malfoy. And the Dementors For Better Imprisonment Conditions badges.

Unfortunately I've been having trouble getting it down nicely.