AN: After another long hiatus, here I am...

Word count: 1,145

IV

"Legilimens!"

Draco nearly tripped down the stone steps leading to the cellar of Malfoy Manor, but was agile enough to block the surprise attack on his thoughts.

His aunt's deranged laugh echoed all around the room for a moment, and then she swiftly regained her composure. "Very good," crooned Bellatrix, stepping out of the shadows. "It's rare that a wizard your age makes so much progress in Occlumency..."

Her sarcasm was not lost on Draco, who knew the apparent compliment was in fact a teasing reminder of the humiliation he had been put through during their last lesson. He had found it considerably quicker to learn the Mind Arts when failure resulted in someone gleefully snooping through his most embarrassing memories.

"But today we shall get back to the Unforgivables," she continued. "Now that you have mastered the Imperius, we can move on to the next curse."

"The Cruciatus," said Draco.

"Precisely," his aunt confirmed. Her face lit up with hellish excitement when she added, "My favourite."

Bellatrix walked over to the middle of the room, where an enormous opaque sphere floated above the ground. Draco followed her, eyeing the object curiously until she began her lecture.

"As you already know, the Cruciatus is the Torture Curse. It inflicts severe, unbearable pain upon its victim, makes them writhe in agony as the pain invades their very souls and overpowers their humanity. Repeated or prolonged usage of the curse might even cause..." She sniggered. "...permanent mental injury. Imagine roaming the Earth as a soulless shell with not a trace of sanity... A fate far worse than death, haha!"

In the dark, cold environment of the cellar and in the disturbing presence of his aunt, thinking of Longbottom's parents' story made Draco cringe inside a bit.

"The curse was created in the Middle Ages," Bellatrix went on, "when magic was immensely more fun, and made illegal in the 18th century. Nowadays it seems only the Dark Lord's followers have the guts to use it. That is, people like me... And you, Draco. Now let's get to work."

With a flourish of her wand the floating sphere dissolved into thin air and let what it contained plop onto the ground. It was one of Draco's father's white peacocks. Confined between those oppressive stone walls, away from the Manor's opulent gardens, the bird appeared much less regal.

"Allow me to demonstrate." Bellatrix happily pointed her wand at the creature and her tongue seemed to caress the incantation as she spoke it, "Crucio!"

The peacock's shrill screech made Draco jump. Wailing like a miniature banshee, the bird started contorting its body into all sorts of bizarre positions, stretching and then curling in on itself, bending its joints the wrong way...

When Bellatrix lifted the curse, it scurried away to a corner, trembling in fear. The Dark witch watched the frightened animal with satisfaction. "Now you try it," she said.

Draco took a few confident steps towards his target and cast the spell, "Crucio!"

The peacock tilted its head and blinked.

Bellatrix snorted. "You must mean it, Draco. Rejoice at the victim's suffering."

"Crucio!"

Nothing.

Two failed attempts were enough to trigger Bellatrix's impatience. "You are leading me to deem you unworthy of a task of this magnitude," she said, but with a sigh, added "However, it is not my place to question the Dark Lord's wishes; my place is to ensure you honour your duties. Imagine it's a Mudblood; that girl who always beats you at school, for instance."

Draco frowned, but kept his focus. "Crucio!"

The bird jumped and made a short sound, as if startled.

"That's pathetic, Draco!" Bellatrix could no longer restrain herself. "I'll show you again how it's done!"

Draco fixed his gaze on the peacock, anticipating a spectacle of suffering that would put to shame the wails he had elicited from the bird.

"Crucio!" Bellatrix bellowed.

Draco heard his own scream as if had come from someone else. His body was no longer his; pain was the master of the limbs helplessly thrashing on the floor. He could feel his very mind being replaced with the all-consuming desperation that struck his every nerve.

When his aunt was satisfied, Draco got to his feet short of breath.

"How dare you!" he yelled.

"Quiet, boy!" Bellatrix ordered. "That was nothing compared to what you'll get from the Dark Lord if you don't start acting like a real Death Eater!"

"I shall give the Dark Lord no reason to punish me," said Draco emphatically.

But Bellatrix remained scornful: "Judging by your performance so far, he will find plenty of reasons."

Draco crossed his arms in an attempt to control his temper. "You said yourself that I was making good progress," he said through gritted teeth.

"Why, boy, a few hexes and minor curses are not nearly enough to carry out the Dark Lord's bidding!"

Draco was well aware his skills encompassed far more than 'a few hexes and minor curses', but it seemed futile to try and put reason against his aunt's furious madness. He would show her what he was capable of when the time came, and let the Dark Lord be the judge of his magical abilities.

Instead of arguing, he said, "Mother will hear about what you've done."

Bellatrix threw her head back and let out a howling cackle, and the sound slowly morphed into a growl. She grabbed her nephew by the arm and brought him inches away from her face.

Draco could almost see Fiendfyre burning in the depths of her obsidian eyes, threatening to engulf him.

"This is no child's play, Draco." She kept her voice to a hiss. "Mummy can't help you this time. Mummy is terrified that her life lies in the hands of her wimp of a son, and Daddy is rotting in Azkaban, because he is as much of a failure as you."

Draco felt his blood boil. A hot bubble of violent emotion grew rapidly inside him, demanding all of his self-control to keep from exploding.

"Your imbecile of a father may have tarnished the Malfoy name, but I, as you mentor, will not let you do the same to my name within the Dark Lord's circle!" Bellatrix's irate screams filled the room with amplified power. "Now do it, Draco, do it!"

He pointed his wand at the peacock and shouted, "Crucio!"

Finally the helpless bird let out a series of ear-piercing screams and twisted itself in a frenzy. Draco imagined the delirious sounds issuing from his aunt's lungs and in the feverish blur of white feathers, he saw wild black tresses and leather-covered limbs.

"That's better," said Bellatrix. "But next time I might not be there to induce a tantrum." She took the skin of her nephew's cheek between her black-varnished talons and pulled like she wanted to rip it from his face. "Grow up, Draco."

AN: Don't forget to review; ConCrit is appreciated :)