Chapter 1

Bellatrix Lestrange was sitting on her small hard cot in her cell in Azkaban prison, gazing through the bars on her window. She could see the stars from her small, cramped, grubby cell. Somehow looking at them helped fight of the depression that constantly threatened to overtake her.

12 years she had been locked away in Azkaban. 12 years of food that was hardly fit for human consumption, scratchy horrible prison clothes and a small, dark cell with very little in it.

The fact she was a maximum security prisoner meant Dementors were outside her door at nearly all hours. They were the foulest creatures she had ever encountered. They sucked away every good feeling until there was nothing left but the despair, the hatred, the burning rage.

They made her relive all the worst experiences of her life...the day Andromeda had gotten engaged to that filthy muggle... the first time Rodolphus had hit her... the day her master had fallen. She hated the Dementors with a passion but she could do nothing to drive them away without a wand.

The lack of a wand and the dampening of her powers had been almost unbearable for Bellatrix. So many times she had longed to curse someone...to make someone hurt for doing this to her.

But even worse than the loss of her magic was the loneliness...the terrible aching loneliness. She had gone so long with no visitors save the Dementors who guarded her cell. Even her meals were pushed through a hole in the door.

She visibly jumped when she heard a soft footstep behind her. Standing by her door in his ragged prison robes, long black unkempt hair framing his still-handsome face was her cousin Sirius Black. A trail of muddy pawprints showed how he had managed to slip through the bars. Evidentially the rumors were true...Sirius Black was an Animagus.

"Evening cousin" he said silkily, leaning casually on the door.

She got off the cot and gave him an appraising, mocking smile.

"Well if it isn't Sirius Black." she said in high mocking voice. "How'd you get out of your cell? Been dogging my footsteps have you?"

"Don't flatter yourself" he said contemptuously. She sighed. Her cousin was obviously spoiling for a fight... something which was inevitable whenever they were in the same room. They were too the same in some ways and too different in others.

She was tried of fighting. "I'm in no mood for games Sirius." she said matter-of-factly. "Why are you here?" she asked in an accusing voice. Her expression was undeniably curious as to why he'd visit her. They had hated each other for years.

"Because… my dear cousin…' he drawled sarcastically. "...After so many years in this place I'm sure you're almost as desperate for company as I am."

"I'm not that desperate" she spat derisively, turning her back to him.

"Really?" he said incredulously. "I'd be pretty desperate if I'd been chucked in here for 12 years out of loyalty for a master who has completely disappeared." His tone was teasing and she could tell he wanted to piss her off. It was working.

She whirled around and spoke to him in a voice that was dripping with disdain. "You're pretty cocky for someone who was arrested for betraying his best friends to their deaths …not to mention mass murder of 14 muggles."

"You know perfectly well I didn't do it" he said in an annoyingly calm voice.

"Of course I know you didn't do it" she said dryly. "I know exactly who sold out the Potter's and it wasn't you. It was that vermin Peter Pettigrew. He set you up nicely...didn't he…cousin?" she finished, her dark eyes glittering maliciously.

"Always the sadistic bitch huh Bella?" he said contemptuously, an angry disdainful look on his face.

"Better a sadistic bitch than a sentimental fool" she shot scathingly back at him.

"Who's the fool?" he said coldly. "Who chose a miserable excuse for a man as her husband? Who chose to follow someone who was finished by a baby boy? Voldemort can't save you now Bella."

"How dare you speak his name…you filthy blood traitor!" she screeched at him, her face furious. He smiled, obviously pleased he had managed to get her all riled up.

"I can call him whatever I like…" he said arrogantly. "I wasn't sacred of him even when he was alive."

"He's not dead!" she yelled, not wanting to believe his words. If he master was truly gone there was no hope...no hope at all. The possibility that he would return and free her was all that had kept her going the past 12 years.

"Surely even you don't that he's coming back after 12 years" Sirius said with a sneer. Bella had to admit he hadn't lost his ability to be as annoying as hell when he wanted to be. He had always been able to push her buttons.

"He will!" she said passionately. "And he'll reward me...his most loyal...his most faithful..."

He interrupted her. "Don't you mean his whore...cousin?" he said wickedly.

That did it. She was furious. She snarled and flung herself at him. She wished she had her wand... he would be on his back writhing in pain in the time it took to say crucio.

Her sudden attack took him by surprise. He barely had time to grab her wrists and stop her clawing his flesh. She was a wildcat his cousin. Surprisingly strong too despite her frail-seeming frame. All prisoners of Azkaban lost a lot of weight. He knew he had.

He barely managed to keep her clawing hands away from his throat. He was weak after so many years in Azkaban and her fury seemed to have given her added strength. He almost smiled. He had known he could depend on his cousin for a good fight. He had been so bored for so long... cooped up in the small cell with no company save the Dementors.

Her dark eyes had the light of madness in them as she desperately struggled to get free of his grip. She wanted to hurt him as much as she could. He could tell. He couldn't help thinking that she looked damn hot when she was angry. Azkaban had not dimmed her beauty. Suddenly he was acutely aware of how long it had been since he was this close to an attractive woman.

Pain shot through him as she brought her knee up to his groin, grinning sadistically. He shoved her away. She staggered backwards a few paces but kept her feet.

The pain made him determined to get the better of her. She advanced on him slowly, still wearing that evil smile. He wanted to to wipe it off her face.

He growled low in his throat and slammed her hard against the wall, enjoying her yelp of pain as he back made contact with the stone.

He pinned her against the wall. Her dark eyes were furious as she struggled to get free. He simply held her there, savoring having her at his mercy. She almost got free but he grabbed her and slammed her back against the wall.

She glowered at him, her eyes saying keen that she wanted very badly to hurt him right then. He was struck again by how sexy she looked when she was mad. That had always been half the fun of getting her riled up.

He had always found her attractive. They might have gotten together back at Hogwarts if it hadn't been clear even back then that they believed in very different ideals.

Deny it as she would he knew she desired him too. She wouldn't hate him as much as she did if she didn't want him. He hated her too...because she was the one person he had always wanted and had never been able to have. Not because they were cousins (after all intermarriage was common among pure bloods) but because they were and would always be on opposite sides.

It struck him then that sides mattered little where they were now. Voldemort was gone. He hadn't been seen for 12 years...since the night he tried the kill Harry Potter. Sirius had been amazed his godson had survived with only a scar. He wished he could have been a proper godfather to harry...given him a home and a family. Not a day when by when he didn't miss James Potter.

Bella's furious struggles brought him away from his thoughts. He had to use all his strength to keep her pinned to the wall. Her closeness was very... distracting. Thoughts of what he'd like to do to his cousin kept drifting across his mind. Thoughts that had nothing to do with fighting...

He was very tempted to act on those thoughts. After all what did it matter anymore what side they were on? Voldemort had lost. The Order of the Phoenix and the Death Eater's had both been disbanded for 12 years. Besides that they were trapped in the most horrible place known to wizardkind....what more did they have to lose?

It had been so long and he had always wanted her... just holding her against the wall like this was getting him rather excited. She'd soon be able to see just how excited he thought wryly to himself. He wondered wickedly what she'd think of that. He had a sneaking suspicion she'd like it.

He pushed her into the wall, pressing his body against her. She gasped in surprise and stopped struggling for a moment. Then she began to struggle again, wriggling violently in his grasp. The felling of her struggling against him made him made him even more excited.

He couldn't stand it anymore. He leaned in and kissed her hard on the mouth.

At first she fought but after a moment she started to kiss him back, her mouth fierce and demanding on his. He felt a surge of lust and satisfaction. He knew she wanted him to. He had always known it.

Damn it felt good after so long of no human contact. Specially as he'd wanted to do just this since the very moment he had seen her...all those years ago on the Hogwarts Express.

Her bony arms wound around his neck and she pressed her body over more firmly against his. She gasped in surprise as she felt how hard he already was. She gave him a wicked, lustful look and continued to kiss him.

His hand slid up her thigh until her robes were bunched up and her leg was curled around his waist. The small part of his brain that wasn't consumed with desire was warning him that this was a bad idea. He didn't think he could bear to stop though... he was so very close to having her right there right then. Her hands was reaching for the waistband of his trousers.

With a massive effort of will he stopped kissing her and pulled back.

Her eyes glittered dangerously as he pulled away. She didn't want him to stop...wanted him badly to keep going.

"I can't" he said regretfully, taking a few steps away.

If looks could kill the look in Bella's eyes surely would have done as she watched him turn into a large black dog and slink slowly out of her cell.