I got back into my evil streak quicker than I thought possible, considering that I hadn’t able to use magic for more than a decade. Now that I (along with the others who escaped) was wanted by the Ministry, we had to be careful about every detail of our movements. After months went by, though, we got a little antsy! The Dark Lord was intent on getting rid of Harry Potter once and for all. It embarrassed him that he couldn’t kill the boy back in the graveyard (I wasn’t there, of course, but I bet it was quite a party). Potter escaped before he suffered any real damage. To make sure this didn’t happen again, the Dark Lord came up with an ingenious idea. He talked with me and all the other Death Eaters of this scheme one afternoon.

“My faithful friends, it’s time that we come out of hiding again,” he declared. “Tonight, we shall lure Harry Potter into the Ministry of Magic. I’ve told you about a prophecy that was written, involving him and me. From what Nagini has shown me, it’s located in the Department of Mysteries. I need to know what the prophecy says, but I cannot touch it myself. Potter has to be the one to do it.”

On the other side of our meeting table, Lucius Malfoy asked, “How do you plan to get him there? And how are we supposed to break in? Isn’t that the most secretive part of the Ministry?”

“Ah, I see you doubt me, Lucius,” the Dark Lord challenged.

Lucius shook his head nervously. “Not at all, my Lord. I just wondered aloud-”

“-if I’d thought of a plan?” The Dark Lord gave him a cold smile. “Lord Voldemort always has a plan. Using Legilimency, we’ll attack the weakest part of Potter: his ability to love! We’ll make him believe that his dear godfather, Sirius Black, is in grave danger…”

This plan was sounding better and better every second. Perhaps Sirius Black would actually come to the Ministry if he knew Potter was being trapped. The fool!

Of course, the Dark Lord and I both proved to be correct. Harry Potter did arrive at the Department of Mysteries, where we greeted him and his friends quite unexpectedly. Then the battle began. Eventually, the Order of the Phoenix came upon the scene and joined the fight. Sirius Black was among them. That naughty boy should’ve stayed at home, because he was still presumed guilty of a mass murder! Anyways, you might have heard that I’m the one responsible for his death. It was as easy as breathing, shooting the Killing Curse at him.

Here’s something that nobody knows about the aftermath of the battle…

As I prepared to go to sleep, it hit me: I just killed my cousin. A member of the Black family. My own flesh and blood! Suddenly, I was busy thinking of Sirius, Andromeda, the Longbottoms, and Helena Radcliffe, even the cat I killed when I was thirteen. Out of nowhere, I found myself crying, silently, for the heart I used to have, for the tyrant I had become. It would seem that Bellatrix Lestrange has a conscience after all.