For twenty-four hours, hidden in her room at the Hog's Head Inn, Tom Riddle questioned Bellatrix Black endlessly about the Dark Lord and his ascension to power. She answered the questions as closely to the truth as she could, walking the line between giving him the information he sought and keeping his infamous anger at bay. Why the Dark Lord needed answers to such questions she knew not; she thought perhaps whatever spell had created the remarkable reversal in his appearance had left him confused about what he had achieved in the years since his youth. She knew only that she must assist him however she could; her blood burned whenever he breathed, she knew he was no imposter in disguise.
"May I see it again?" he asked, his voice full of longing. She nodded and held out her left arm, pulling back her sleeve as she did so.
"Of course, Mas – Tom." She didn't understand his insistence that he was not her Master, or that she call him Tom, but the new title caused her a thrill of anticipation, the knowledge of intimacy with the one she worshiped.
He studied the Dark Mark carefully, cautious not to touch it least he called Lord Voldemort to them. He wasn't certain that his welcome would be warm; he could not risk getting replaced inside the diary, his life dependant upon the protection of others. When he was sure the Dark Lord would accept him and allow him his freedom he would show himself.
Suddenly there was a knock at the door. Bella's eyes widened, looking to Tom for instruction. Riddle frowned at her, and gestured to her wand. "Give me your wand; I will hide, you will say nothing of my presence." He spoke in a low whisper, smooth as the gliding of a snake. She nodded and handed him her wand before going to the door.
She opened it a fraction of an inch. In the small opening provided she saw the hooked nose and lank black hair of Severus Snape.
"Bellatrix," he said, by way of greeting. She glanced quickly behind herself, but the room appeared empty. The Dark Lord had evidently not forgotten how to produce a proper Disillusionment Charm. She opened the door and stepped aside, allowing Snape entrance.
"The Dark Lord asked me to find you, to assist you in your capture of the Animangus Black." He gave her a thoroughly disgusted look. "What is wrong with you, Bellatrix, that you have not yet preformed this one simple task? You have been the Dark Lord's pet, his talented protégé, from the very beginning. He taught you himself!"
"I know all of this, Severus," Bella replied haughtily. "But Black is more elusive than I ever imagined possible. I doubt even your help will work. We will need much more man power."
"I hope you are not right or it won't be torture that we have to worry about," he snapped in return. "I will not die for Sirius Black!" He seemed to be shouting now at someone besides Bella, but she didn't ask where such anger originated.
Her silence seemed to bother Snape; he turned on her, running a hand down her arm as if to gauge her reaction; there was none. "You know, Bellatrix, you and I are two of his most trusted Death Eaters." Bella stayed silent. "He would not object to such a union, I think." Her arm twitched underneath his hand. "But you do?"
She narrowed her eyes at him and began an angry retort, stopping short when she noticed the mocking smirk growing on his features. She laughed instead. "You? You think that you tempt me, Snape? You!?" She continued to laugh as his face turned and ugly, blotchy red. "I remember Lily Evans, Severus, and I think you do too. Any man who could cherish a Mudblood as you have could never be man enough to have me." His face contorted.
"Don't say her name," he breathed, his voice nothing more than a hoarse, angry whisper.
"She'll be nothing but fodder, soon, Severus. Who will you pine after then?" Bella whispered cruelly. With a cry of rage Severus charged at her, hands at her throat, pressing her back against the wall. Without a wand to protect herself she struggled in vain against her larger opponent, ripping at his face and arms with her hands curved like claws.
"Stupefy," the voice came from the wall behind the door, the red beam of light hitting Snape in the middle of his back. Snape dropped to the floor, Bella beside him, gasping for air.
Tom rushed to her side, worried more about the detriment of his plans than about the woman herself. "Bella? Speak to me!" the commanding tone in his voice was obvious, but Bella ignored him, pushing his hands away in her fight for air.
Affronted, Tom considering strangling her himself, but pushed the thought hastily aside. "Anapneo." The Charm cleared her airway instantly allowing her to breathe normally.
"Forgive me, Master, I know not what I was thinking." Bella slumped against the wall, pushing Snape's still form roughly to the side.
He shook his head and stood. "I am not your Master, Bella. You owe me no allegiance." She looked at him, bewildered, but gave a nod of assent. "Come, we must be gone before he awakens."
Snape came to slowly. With blurry eyes he looked around the room: empty. That bitch, he thought. He had lost his temper, he knew, but she should have known he wouldn't have hurt her. Much. He smirked a little.
Then it occurred to him. She wasn't holding a wand. He stood, carefully, and searched the room. There were no obvious hiding places, her consort much have been hidden magically.
He sat on the bed, head in his hands, and considered who her friend might have been. Stupefy. The voice had been calm, smooth and distinctly male, but it wasn't one he recognized. It could be none of the their fellow Death Eaters; he and Bella had worked closely for some time, anyone she was assigned to work with he would know too. Snape knew that none of them would have come to her aid, they all knew of the Dark Lord's affection for her. Anything that brought them closer to their master would have been welcomed.
A small smile crept slowly onto his face. We shall see, then, what you've been up to, little Bella.
He led her to a small building, one she had never seen before, but which seemed to spring up when he whispered, "There is a safe house, at thirty three Gravestone street," nestled close between two homes. It was small and run down, comprised of a small kitchen, a bathroom and a bedroom off to the side. There was only one window, above the kitchen sink. Bella could feel the walls closing in on her as he shut the door behind them.
She didn't ask how he had acquired such a place; the Dark Lord was expected to have many secrets. Tom watched her as she examined the place discreetly but made no clarifying comments. "You will stay here with me, until I know everything you know. Until I have no more questions." She gave a nod of assent.
"Why are you searching for this… Black?" Black was a pureblood family; surely the Dark Lord couldn't be targeting purebloods?
"He is a brother of one of your followers, Regulus Black, and my cousin. You did not specify your interest in him, but I would venture to guess," she met his eyes, carefully gauging his reaction, "that it has something to do with his fondness for Mudbloods. You have said before that we need to assure that our family trees remain pure." He seemed to find this acceptable, so she continued, "I imagine that you're searching for him in order to kill him as a favor. To Regulus and myself. We have been very devoted."
Tom narrowed his eyes at her. "Your brown nosing will do you no good; if we succeed in this venture than you shall be rewarded as such. If not, you shall be punished. Your previous devotion matters little, it is what you do now that counts."
Moved by his words she fell to her knees, touching the hem of his robes with something close to reverence. "Master, you need never worry that I should stray. I am yours, forever, and I shall do everything in my power to assure that you remain King among wizards forevermore." Her voice had changed to a rasping, passionate whisper. "Even if I should die in the attempt, I will not fail you."
His hand gave a telling twitch and he grabbed her arm, hauling her roughly to her feet. "I have told you more than once, I am not your master." He gave her a little shake, pleased at the sight of fear in her eyes. He smiled slowly, that mocking smile that she knew so well. "Forever is a long time, Bella. Are you sure you know what you're agreeing to?" She gave a short nod, passion obvious in the set of her mouth. "Good." He tossed her to the ground. "Then go, find Severus Snape and apologize for stunning him. You must continue to do the Dark Lord's bidding; no one must suspect that you are helping me. Do you understand?" She nodded but didn't rise; she appeared to be discreetly checking her elbow. It must have hit the floor first when he'd tossed her aside. He felt a sharp stab of regret and froze in place.
Regret. He had long since torn his soul in two; living in the diary for years, attempting to possess anyone who showed the slightest interest in what lay inside the diary's pages, he had never felt any sort of compelling emotion. He thought he had done away with it. He walked quickly into the bedroom, leaving Bella alone on the floor, his thoughts racing. His whole life he had fought for control, fought to empty himself of passion. He could not love, he could not feel pain and he would not let himself regret over someone as dispensable as Bellatrix Black.
With this certainty in mind he opened the door slightly, to tell Bella she could leave. But the floor was bare and the door had already been shut quietly behind her. She was already gone.