A/N: I'm so sorry for the delay in updating but I've been really busy this period. In addition, I didn't like at all this new chapter and was thinking to delete it and rewrite it... but I didn't have the courage to do it... so I kept making corrections , deleting stuff and rewriting...I'm not really fond of the outcome but I couldn't do anything better at this point. I'm really looking forward to reading your reviews!

Chapter 4

She appeared in the middle of the same, room she had been two nights before. Only this time it was empty of furniture and the candles of the giant black crystal chandelier that was hanging exactly above her head were not lit. In fact the whole room would've been drenched in total darkness if there were not a massive arch in the wall right in front of her that let in the faint glowof the crescent moon.

She stood there for a while, in complete silence, staring outside the gigantic arch where a balcony made of dark stone could barely be distinguished. She had a feeling that something was going wrong. He should be waiting for her right there. What had happened? And this total silence was pretty awkward. The time was passing. He had called her and was now waiting for her. And he didn't like waiting… Did she do anything wrong? Perhaps she disapparated in the wrong place… But how can this be? She started feeling a little uncomfortable. She was certain that somebody was watching her. She wished it was him. Her stomach churned with anxiety and tightened into a knot. And what if it is him? Did he expect from her to do something specific?

Her eyes wandered nervously around the room but she couldn't see anything further from where the weak moonbeam fell. He should be somewhere around there.

"My Lord? You…you called me?" she asked hesitantly and her voice echoed in the empty room. No reply. She looked at the arch again and suddenly felt a strong urge to get outside, to the balcony. All her fear had just vanished. She was now stuck on the idea that something was waiting for her out there.

She determinedly started walking towards the arch and her steps echoed hollowly. She didn't seem to bother. The moonlight highlighted her features in her every step and a slight breeze ruffled her hair gently. The woman was walking steadily, rather mechanically, with a vacant look on her face, completely devoid of emotion. She finally got out. It was snowing. Soon, several small snowflakes had fallen all over her wavy hair and were slowly melting. She walked straight to the edge of the balcony without turning her head to look around.

The moment she reached the edge a cold wave spread all over her body and chilled her through to her bones with such a force that caused her pain. She felt as if she was waking up from a deep sleep and it took her a few moments to realize where she was and what she was doing there. What happened? How did I get here? She thought, quickly turning her head to give nervous looks all around. No one was there… It was a freezing cold night and she had forgotten her cloak to her parents' house. The emerald velvet dress she was wearing left her shoulders fully exposed and wasn't helping much in protecting her from the cold. She started trembling. She quickly wrapped her arms around her body in an attempt to keep herself warm and started walking back to the room.

"You… disappoint me… Bella." She heard an overly familiar voice coming from inside the room. She froze… and this time not because of the cold.

An indistinct figure emerged slowly from the shadows inside the building. In a few moments Voldemort was standing a few steps away from her in front of the arch, wearing a long black velvet cloak which reached the floor.

"I thought that…" he continued but left his sentence incomplete as he looked at her more carefully "Oh! Did I interrupt something, Bellatrix? Where have you been all dressed up like that?" he asked sarcastically nodding his head to her dress.

In spite of the cold, Bellatrix felt her cheeks get hot as they turned a rather red color.

She was once again unable to utter a single word. She opened her mouth but no voice came out.

"What is it, Bella? I think I asked you something" Voldemort insisted and she saw his eyes sparkle playfully under the moon.

She gulped and opened her mouth again. "I…I was at my parents'…for dinner." she finally managed to say, still trembling from the cold.

"Oh! Of course! Your little sister got back from Hogwarts and you all gathered together to celebrate it!" he said ironically.

Bellatrix remained silent.

"So, tell me Bella, have you got anything planned for Christmas Eve? Are you going to be able to honor me with your presence? ...And…yes, that'd be tomorrow night." he added in the same ironic tone.

Bellatrix gave him a surprised look and gasped.

"What just crossed your mind, Bella? That I'm asking you out on a romantic dinner for two or something?" he laughed. "As I've already told you I'm deeply disappointed by you and that's the reason why I need you to be with me again tomorrow…Or better…you need me…and now that I'm thinking about it… perhaps not just tomorrow… even the day after tomorrow…perhaps every day for the next month or even year…That depends on your behavior, of course." he stated enigmatically.

"I'm not sure I …understand… my Lord…" she murmured anxiously unable follow his train of thought.

"Please, Bella, don't make me regret the moment I chose you to serve me!" he exclaimed irritated.

"Oh my Lord! I wouldn't want that!" Bellatrix hurried to say. She was overcome by fear once again. Voldemort losing his faith in her. The thing she feared more than anything in the world.

"Of course…" he hissed and after a small pause he added demandingly "Follow me inside" and entered the dark room. He walked all the way to its other side and Bellatrix followed him. They stood in front of an enormous fireplace made of black marble and Voldemort lit a fire with a slight move of his wand.

Bellatrix blinked, trying to get used to the sudden glare of the fire and made a few steps to get closer to it, so she could warm up herself. She felt deeply grateful for him, at the moment, as she had frozen completely from the cold. The distinctly pleasurable warmth of the fire swept through her body. The heat somewhat calmed her down and helped her gain some courage. Now that she had gotten used to the light she could observe freely the features of the man that was standing next to her. He was staring into the fire persistently, with a rather displeased look on his face and he didn't seem to pay much attention about what she was currently doing.

Although his features seemed somewhat deformed, he was still rather attractive, emitting a peculiar charm. His skin was oddly pale, almost transparent with all of his veins showing through, while his fingers were extraordinarily slim and long, skeleton-like. Dark, wavy hair framed his gaunt face and now that his head was inclined as he was watching the fire, a loose curl had fallen in front of it and caressed his thin lips. The lips she craved to taste more than anything…

Now, she set her eyes on the feature she considered as his most attractive... His eyes. Hauntingly beautiful and dark as charcoal… She was sure though, that she had seen some red highlights from time to time in them…

"You need training, Bella" he suddenly stated, turning his head so that his eyes immediately met hers and gave her a look full of contempt.

Bellatrix was taken aback by the unexpected breaking of silence and even more by his eyes staring straight into hers. She quickly lowered her look and she was ready to say something when Voldemort spoke again, interrupting her.

"Oh please don't tell me that you don't understand, again!" he said angrily.

Bellatrix's eyes opened wide in surprise. But how? How does he…

Voldemort laughed.

"…know what you wanted to ask? How do I know, indeed? …How can this be?... What if it is him?What happened? How did I get here? " he said in a childish voice. "You are so naïve!" he added before she could respond. "Legilimency, Bellatrix! Ever heard of it? Or they do not teach anything useful in that school anymore?"

She was totally shocked. Her eyes were popped out and she was staring at him with her mouth open but she couldn't find anything to say that would not make her seem stupid. He can read my mind! How can I be so stupid? And before… oh no!

"What is it that you where thinking before, Bella?" he asked ironically, amused by the fact he could cause her so much frustration.

She said nothing. Her mind was working feverishly. I must stop thinking. I must empty my mind.Stop thinking. Stop… She tried to cast away every single thought she'd made in the last few minutes. The taste of his lips… His eyes…

"Oh don't bother! I don't care about what your little mind is thinking as long as it doesn't concern my safety and the success of our mission! I think I can trust you to that point. Am I right, Bellatrix?"

"Of course my Lord!" Bellatrix replied and a hesitant smile of relief was painted her lips.

"So… to the point!" Voldemort continued in a calmer tone "Can you please tell me now how indeed did you get there?" he asked repeating Bellatrix's thoughts.

Suddenly everything was crystal clear. Her smile disappeared.

"The Imperius Curse" she mumbled.

"What did you say?...I didn't hear. Could you repeat, please?"

She took a deep breath and cleared her throat.

"It was the Imperius Curse, my Lord." she repeated, louder this time.

"Yes, Bellatrix. Of course it was! I casted the Imperius Curse on you. Could you please explain to me how did you let this happen? How can you be so stupidly naïve? How can you appear in the middle of a room where everything is dark, you see no one and still you don't take any precautions? You didn't even think to take out your wand! What if something had happened to me, Bellatrix? How can I count on you after that? How? How can I trust you, Bella?" he spat out angrily stressing his last sentence and Bellatrix thought for a moment that she'd heard a kind of despair in his voice. Despair and insecurity. He had probably heard it as well and when he spoke again his voice came out calmer.

"Things are worse than I believed so, as I've already told you, you need to be trained. Exercised. And if I want to do it right I must be the one to train you." he concluded.

"Oh... But… that's an honor, my Lord!" Bellatrix said in excitement after she processed his words "Being trained by the master of the kind!"

"Don't get too excited, Bella" he retorted "You got me deeply disappointed today. I don't intend to ignore it."

Bellatrix was sure she saw his eyes sparkle red. It was the first time it was happening when he referred to her and she was certain that this could not, by any means, be a good sign… He had turned his head away and was staring at the fire again, lost in his thoughts, looking frustrated. She didn't know if she had to say something. How she should react. So, she preferred to just stay there and say nothing. The time was passing tortuously slowly but she had no other choice than stand still and wait for him to do something….

…But he wouldn't do anything. He seemed completely absorbed by his thoughts and she started feeling somewhat uncomfortable. Gradually, all the things that had happened that night began to unfold like a movie in front of her eyes. How stupidly she had reacted… and then the way she'd handled the whole situation was so… silly. She let him create a rather distorted image of who she really was. No… this was not her. She was not any weak little girl who didn't know how to fight, neither was she naïve. On the contrary, she was one of the best in her class when it came to dueling and she, certainly, knew really well how to protect herself. Only… he had to become aware of it! Yes… the training will be my opportunity to show him who I really am. He'll certainly appreciate my dueling skills. She thought in an attempt to convince herself and calm down. …I've really messed things up… How stupid can I be?...

She could feel a lump forming in her throat and tears began to well up in her eyes. Just the thought of him feeling let down by her behavior… it caused her so much pain. She strove to hold back her tears and make her thoughts go away. He shouldn't see her like that. This would only make things worse… No matter how much she struggled, a tear came from one of her eyes and slid all the way down her cheek. No I am not like that! She said to herself though she could feel more unbidden tears running down her cheeks. She took a deep breath and began wiping them off with the back of her hand only to realize that this was not such a good idea. Voldemort had been distracted from his thoughts hearing her breath getting heavier and from the corner of his eye he had gotten a glimpse of her, moving. He turned his head slowly, looking rather annoyed by the interruption, to find her in tears.

At first he seemed to be taken aback by what he witnessed, but shortly after that a subtle smile formed on his lips. "I think it'd be better if you left now, Bellatrix." he said in his calmest tone and then added "We'll meet again tomorrow for your first lesson. Here. At midnight. Don't be late."

Bellatrix tried to say something but words would not come out. More tears fell, dampening her cheeks.

"Just go."