A/N - (The parts that begin and end with: are taken from pages 714-717 of OotP. They are part of a flash back that takes place. However differences occur in the fact that the text is from Bellatrix's point of view rather than Harry's as J.K. Rowling writes it.)

N.B: Written before HBP.

Bellatrix cowered before Lord Voldemort. Her whimpering was beginning to annoy him. If only he could stop her. "Bella, stop that infernal racquet!"

Bellatrix was so scared but perhaps if she could pacify him. "But my Lord, I am so sorry… it is my fault that the Potter boy lost the prophecy"

"Yes, it is, but if you don't shut up now you are going to see the wrong end of AVADA KEDARA!"

Bellatrix was almost at the telephone lift at the other end of the hall she could hear the Potter boy following her and looked back at him as he sprinted towards her. She aimed another spell at him but he dodged behind the fountain of Magical brethren: the spell zoomed past him and hit the wrought-gold gates at the other end of the atrium so that they rang like bells. Bellatrix stopped running. She turned towards the fountain and in her mock baby voice called out, "Come out, come out, little Harry! What did you come after me for, then? I thought you were here to avenge my dear cousin!""I am!" she heard Potter shout from behind the fountain.

"Aaaaaah…did you love him, little baby Potter?" Oh she thought this was going to be easier than she had realised. Potter was indeed the noble prat Lord Voldemort had professed him to be. With this thought Bellatrix felt a shot of guilt run through her. She should have known this already. She should always believe the words of the Great Lord.

Suddenly Bellatrix heard the word "crucio" echo off the polished wood floors. A shot of panic ran through her and then a shot of pain. She screamed and was knocked to the floor. The pain had disappeared however and she got back to her feet. She was angry now. The little prat had caught her off guard. She would get the prophecy off him now and then she would kill him, just like she had killed Black. The Great Lord would then be forever in her debt. Perhaps then the fact that she was the only woman death eater would not matter so much. Perhaps then all the men would respect her and accept her as they never really had before. She would not have to lean on her husband as she had in the past to even be in the circles of the Death Eater's.

"Never used an Unforgivable curse before, have you boy?" she yelled. She had abandoned her baby voice now. She did not want to mock him any more, she wanted to kill him. "You need to mean them, Potter! You need to really want to cause pain – to enjoy it – righteous anger wont hurt me for long – I'll show you how it is done, shall I? I'll give you a lesson…"

Bellatrix saw Potter edging around the fountain on the other side when she screamed "crucio!" She saw him duck down again as the centaur's arm, holding its bow, span off and landed with a crash on the floor a short distance from the Golden wizards head.

Bellatrix glowed with rage, "Potter, you cannot win against me!" she cried. She began moving to the right, trying to get a clear shot of Potter. He was backing around the statue away from her. More anger was bubbling to the surface. She was getting sick of this little goose chase. "I am the dark Lord's most loyal servant. I learned the dark arts from him, and I know spells of such power that you, pathetic little boy, can never hope to compete…"

"Stupefy" yelled Harry. But Bellatrix was ready and she reacted so fast that Potter barely had time to duck.

"Protego!" The jet of red light, Potter's own stunning spell, bounced back at him. Unfortunately Potter once again scrambled back behind the fountain and instead one of the goblins ears went flying across the room.

By this stage Bellatrix was only barely holding her temper in check. All she wanted to do was annihilate this little brat. "Potter! I am going to give you one chance!" shouted Bellatrix. "Give me the prophecy – roll it towards me now – and I may spare your life!"

The Potter boy got a laughable look on his face & shouted "well, you're going to have to kill me, because it's gone!" Then out of the blue, with a mad laugh to match Bellatrix's own, "and he knows!" said Potter, "Your dear old mate Voldemort knows it's gone! He's not going to be happy with you for this, is he?"

Bellatrix seized up and fear flooded through her. How could the great lord know? How could Potter know if Voldemort knew such lies? The little prat was lying! But there was still a part of her that was unsure.

"What? What do you mean? She cried, her fear radiating in her voice.

"The prophecy smashed when I was trying to get Neville up the steps! What do you think Voldemort'll say about that, then?"

Bellatrix was so angry. But inside that anger she could feel fear radiating through herself also. "LIAR!" she shrieked, and even she could hear the terror behind her anger now. "YOU"VE GOT IT, POTTER, AND YOU WILL GIVE IT TO ME! Accio prophecy! ACCIO PROPHECY!" She heard him laugh again and wave an empty hand from behind the one-eared goblin which he withdrew as she shot another bolt of bright green light flying at him.

"Nothing there!" Potter shouted "Nothing to summon! It smashed and nobody heard what it said, tell your boss that!"

"No!" Bellatrix screamed. She was so afraid now. She wanted to sink into a black hole in the ground. As quickly as the thought came into her head, it vanished. The extent of the Dark Lord's powers was beyond her imagination. Who knew what he could do if he read that thought. He may even oblige for her and indeed make a black hole appear. "It isn't true, you're lying! MASTER, I TRIED, I TRIED- DO NOT PUNISH ME".

"Don't waste your breath!" yelled Potter, "He can't hear you from here". Bellatrix however was not so sure. The next thing she knew her real fear came to be.

"Can't I Potter?" said a high, cold voice. The great mass of Lord Voldemort had appeared in the middle of the hall, his wand pointing at Potter who stood frozen, quite unable to move. Bellatrix cowered in fear.

"So, you smashed my prophecy?" said Voldemort softly, staring at Potter with his pitiless red eyes. "No Bella, he is not lying…I see the truth looking at me from within his worthless mind…" Bellatrix was glad that she had cleared her mind of her previous thought. However as she thought this she saw Voldemorts eyes flicker over to her before once again concentrating on Potter. "Months of preparation…" Voldemort said, "Months of effort…and my Death eaters have let Harry Potter thwart me again…"

"Master, I am sorry, I knew not, I was fighting the Animagus Black!" sobbed Bellatrix, flinging herself down at Voldemorts feet as he paced slowly nearer. "Master, you should know…"

"Be quite, Bella," said Voldemort dangerously. "I shall deal with you in a moment. Do you think I have entered the ministry of magic to hear your snivelling apologies?"

"But Master – he is here – he is below", but Voldemort paid no attention.

Bellatrix could not bear to think of it any more and lowered her eyes from those of Voldemort.

"I'm sorry my Lord"

"I said SHUT UP! And at any rate despite the fact that you made him break the prophecy there must be another way to get it."

"Yes, yes that's it, there is another way to get it" laughed Bellatrix

Voldemort glowered. Bella could be so daft at times. "Don't get too comfortable in that knowledge Bella dear. You may have got rid of that infernal nuisance Black, but Potter and Dumbledore" he hissed "are still at liberty. How do I rid myself of their ever constant presence? Their ever constant attempts to thwart my plans?"

Bellatrix took a deep breath and hoped that Voldemort had only threatened to Avada Kedara her and did not really mean it. If he did she could be in a lot of trouble any moment. Come to think of it she could still very well be in a lot of trouble. "If I may offer a suggestion my Lord?"

Voldemort looked at Bellatrix again. Maybe she was not as cowardly as he had previously thought her. "Offer away Bella."

"Well my Lord, your brilliant mind has found Potter's weakness now. He is a noble prat and cares too much about those around him, as we can see from his stupidity concerning Black".

Voldemort narrowed his eyes at her but allowed her to proceed. "Yes Bella, go on."

"Well perhaps you could do that again my Lord."

Voldemort looked at her in amazement. Did she really think such a plan could work twice? Was she daft? "What Bella? Do you really think that those around him would let him fall for it so easily this time, especially Dumbledore?"

"Well perhaps there is a way to make those who are too close to him, ah shall we say, disappear?"

"How do you propose I do that?"

"Potter is at his aunt and uncles house…"

Voldemort lost his temper at this. Bella must really have lost her mind down in the bowels of the ministry of magic. "I KNOW THAT! I CANNOT GET AT HIM THERE! HOW MANY TIMES DO I HAVE TO TELL YOU!"

"I…I… I'm sorry my lord" stammered Bellatrix, cowering. "What…What I meant was that perhaps whilst he is there you could get at his friends"

"Now Bella that would make him a little suspicious don't you think?"

"Malfoy…"

Voldemort bristled, "Bella, Malfoy is in the hands of the ministry of magic and despite the fact that he will eventually get out of Azkaban he is still there at this stage."

Bellatrix swallowed again. This was the essence of her plan and if Voldemort hated it then she was not long for this world. "Not that Malfoy, Voldemort, his son"

"What about his son?" breathed Voldemort leaning closer to Bellatrix. Maybe she hadn't lost her mind after all. Bellatrix gathered all of her courage and slid in very close to him, leaned up and whispered in his ear. "He can become friends with the Potter boy and lure him into a trap."