A/N: If anyone is familiar with Death Cab, there's a line in one of their songs that I couldn't help thinking of while writing: 'Son, fear is the heart of love'. I don't believe Bellatrix was incapable of love, but I think her concept of it was a bit warped.

Anyway, Bellatrix was really difficult for me to write, but I certainly enjoyed the challenge, and I hope you enjoy the result!

QLFC Round 1

Keeper for the Chudley Cannons

Prompt: Caregiver, and I chose Goal: helping people

Word Count: 1000

"Oh, Draco!" she cried, laughing as she skipped down the hall. "Little Draco! Come out, come out!"

She was in a generous mood today. When she found him, there would be no extra punishment for trying to hide. Effort did count for something.

She flung open a door and peered inside, but she didn't see him.

"Don't hide from your Aunt Bella, Draco!" she called into the room, crooning.

There was no movement, no noise at all. She smiled and slowly pulled her wand out, flattening her palm, and lifting it up to eye level.

"Point me Draco," she whispered to it lovingly. Throwing back her head, she shuddered in delight as she felt the tingle of magic running through her veins.

The first time she'd used her wand after escaping Azkaban had been... orgasmic. Even now, months later, the sensation had hardly lessened in intensity at all.

Her wand finished swiveling in her palm and remained firmly pointed out of the room and further down the hall. She followed its directions, humming cheerfully as she went.

Bellatrix had never considered herself a particularly motherly kind of person. Children were annoying, squalling piles of neediness. They were meant to be passed off to the house-elves for basic care and necessity, and occasionally be brought out for show-and-tell with one's pureblood friends.

That had been her experience, anyway, even if her only ability had been managing to keep her tongue firmly in check while Cissy and Andy performed for their mother's friends.

When Draco was an infant, Cissy had spent more time with him than acceptable, although it was somewhat understandable, given how unusually quiet and well-behaved he'd been, but Bellatrix had assumed that would change once he was older and more troublesome.

Unfortunately, she had been disappointed when she met her nephew again after reuniting with her master. Cissy had obviously spent too much time coddling Draco.

Her nephew was soft and spineless.

Oh, he put on a good act, with his little sneers and pathetic jibes, but it was a flimsy cover.

He was weak.

He'd proven it on the Astronomy Tower, hadn't he? Draco couldn't even kill one measly old man for the Dark Lord. Snape, the greasy bastard, had to do it for him.

Bellatrix remembered her own first kill for Him – a filthy mudblood who'd had it coming. It had been a rush of power like nothing she'd ever experienced before. She'd basked in the euphoria of it for hours afterward.

Draco just needed to see what he was missing, that was all. It was a sacrifice on her part – she was allergic to weakness – but it was shameful, when she found him cowering on the floor in front of the Dark Lord, to think that they were related at all. The embarrassment, she was sure, was even worse for Cissy, to have a son so deficient.

The wand, still perched in her flattened palm, swiveled when she neared the library doors, and Bellatrix smiled, slipping her wand back into its pocket. She wanted to find Draco herself.

She traipsed into the library, shoes striking the floor dangerously. She could have muffled the sound, but where was the fun in that?

"Did you think I wouldn't come in here?" she asked the quiet room. She was sure he could hear her.

She felt the air shift slightly to her left. Bellatrix's smile widened, but she turned away, pretending not to see it.

"Today's first lesson," she sing-songed, "don't underestimate anyone."

And then she whirled about, wand in her hand again, spell on her breath. There was a thump of limbs as her nephew collapsed to the floor. Another swish, and his Disillusionment charm broke.

"Oh, Draco." She moved closer. "Did you really think you could hide from me? I'm only here to help you, and you're making it so hard."

He was paralyzed, of course, and couldn't respond, but she saw the fear hiding behind his eyes, and she was pleased. This was exactly what she wanted.

Fear, after all, was at the heart of everything.

Cissy and Lucius had failed to teach Draco this, but she was here now to fix it. She would teach him to enjoy it, and then she would teach him to use it.

She knelt on the floor next to him and traced her wand down his cheek lovingly.

"You're doing so well, Draco," she crooned gently, "but I can help you do better."

She released the binding spell, and then, before he could do anything, she hissed:

"Crucio."

Her nephew screamed wonderfully, his body shaking and twisting and contorting. Bellatrix didn't let up, watching him dissolve while letting the stimulating strength of the Cruciatus wash over her. She waited until his voice became nearly hoarse before cutting off the spell.

The noise tapered down slowly, devolving into feeble whimpers, and Bellatrix frowned in disgust at the wretched sounds.

"Look at me!" she snapped, and Draco turned his head to her abruptly, eyes slightly glazed with pain and panic.

"Oh, there you go," she said, pleased at how terrified he was. She reached out and rested her hand on his cheek and watched the fear rise.

"Good, good, Draco, do you feel that? Do you understand, now? All you have to do is embrace this."

He only looked back at her with confusion, and she shook her head. "How many more lessons do you need, Draco?"

"No, no more, please, Aunt Bella," he begged, fresh tears tracking down his cheeks.

"You stubborn boy," she told him, stroking his face as he tried to turn away from her. "Let go; rejoice in it."

She stood, looking down at her sniveling nephew. His eyes were shut now, body curled up and trembling on the floor. He still didn't want her lessons, although she offered them freely, and only for his benefit.

"Draco, Draco," she sighed, raising her wand over his unsuspecting form.

"Don't worry, I'll make sure you learn."