The Eternal Darkness of Sirius Black's Mind

CHAPTER 1: THE NEW INMATES

Night had fallen and the torches had turned the prison from a benign enemy to a frightening beast. Demonic shadows flickered and capered on the slick black walls of Azkaban. Cool drafts of the night air swept through the cell blocks, the briny taste of the sea hiding in the folds of the breeze. The inmates of Azkaban moved around restlessly in their cells. Some stood plaintively at their cell doors, their hollowed out eyes and pale faces peering down on the bottom level. That was where everyone came in, but would never leave from, except maybe in a body bag.

Azkaban was a triangular shaped tower built of solid black stone, and centered on a desolate island that was off the coast of England in the North Sea. The sea around Azkaban was gray and brutal, especially during storm season. The sky was always dark and mists constantly surrounded the impregnable tower. The wind off the sea would send gusts of cold air and moisture into the prison. With scanty clothes, and one threadbare blanket, the cold tended to get to people more than anything else. Many a winter had passed where the population of Azkaban had been dwindled down. Only the torches along the walls gave any source of heat or light in the prison, casting flickering shadows over the inmates. The prison was ruthless and unforgiving. Without the added horror of Dementors, the prison itself would have sucked out the soul of its inhabitants.

Sirius sat near his cell door, leaning against his slime covered wall. On either side of his door were his two personal Dementor guards. Occasionally one of his guards turned and looked in on him. Black had come to calling that particular guard Smiley.

Smiley seemed to be intrigued by Sirius for reasons that Black would never want to know. Smiley liked to come into Sirius' cell, and inspect its barren interior. Sirius had no idea what it was Smiley was looking for on those visits, and he really didn't care. So long as Smiley left him alone, Black allowed the Dementor near him. It wasn't like he had a choice anyway.

Sirius' second guard, on the other hand, kept him on edge. This one was more skittish, and quick to attack. There were plenty of times when Sirius had moved too quickly, and caused his second Dementor guard to pounce on him. He had come to calling this guard Skitty Kitty (or Skitty for short).

Smiley and Skitty floated near Sirius' cell door as they normally did, but Skitty Kitty was more restless than normal, floating erratically in front of Sirius' cell. This action alone was making him nervous.

And he wasn't the only one. Sirius could tell that the other inmates were more apprehensive than normal; their eyes would constantly flicker to the Dementors outside their cells that circled around the tower on patrol. Black had noticed that the few Dementors in the prison were acting like Skitty. They were becoming more restless and excited as the night wore on.

Sirius looked down from his high level cell to the bottom floor. Tonight was new inmates night. Every six months, a group of new prisoners came to Azkaban, accompanied by a group of Dementors. Sirius had heard rumors that tonight an abnormal amount of new prisoners were coming in. The Ministry must be working overtime, though Black could hardly understand why. Something must be happening on the outside to have such a large group coming in now. Black knew that Harry was starting Hogwarts this year, and he was afraid that that may be the reason behind this upsurge of offenders.

Sirius had seen the arrival of new prisoners before, and he had never been particularly interested in watching, but this time was different, was off. He felt the difference in his bones. The arrival of new inmates always got the Dementors excited, and Sirius could feel the Dementors anticipation; the air in the prison was dropping in temperature as the minutes slipped by. Sirius had already grabbed his blanket, and wrapped it around himself, trying to shield himself from the Dementors' chill.

The Dementors usually had shifts because the Ministry didn't like having too many of them in the prison at one time. Sirius had a feeling that this rule was going to be broken tonight, especially if a large amount of Dementors came with the rumored large group of new inmates. A dark premonition warned him that tonight was going to be dangerous.

After what seemed like an intolerable wait, the main entrance to the prison opened, and a large group of new inmates was herded in by a larger than normal group of Dementors; there was at least one Dementor for every three new prisoners. Following the Dementors and the new inmates, were about five or six Ministry wizards.

Sirius leaned closer to his bars, trying to look down on the newcomers. Fresh meat is what he liked to call them, but sometimes he would refer to them as fresh souls. Sirius watched as the new batch came in, dressed in the usual gray and white robes and waiting to be sorted. The rumors had been right. This was an abnormal amount of new inmates.

Some of the prisoners stood proud, as if this place would not get them; they were usually the first to break. Others came in as meek as mice, barely looking anyone in the face; they would be the first to die. Azkaban didn't care who a person was before they arrived there. All that truly mattered in a place like Azkaban was how strong a mind and spirit a person had inside them. Physical size of one's body meant next to nothing in here.

Sirius watched as the new prisoners walked forward into the belly of the beast. Fear oscillated between the new arrivals, which in turn agitated the Dementors. Sirius felt his anxiety tighten his lean, emaciated muscles. He didn't like the amount of Dementors that had come with the new prisoners, adding to the amount of Dementors that were already in the prison. This situation only needed an accelerant to become a raging firestorm.

The lead Ministry wizard pulled out a scroll, and unrolled the long paper. He began to read off the names of the new inmates, and where they would be put while they were in Azkaban. Sirius watched as the Dementors began to fly faster and faster around the prison, as the sorting of the new inmates began.

Most people who came to Azkaban were sorted into the bottom level. This was the level where inmates were given the most freedom. People in the bottom level had committed the least offensive crimes, and were only in Azkaban for a short while. These were the minor rule breakers and small time thieves. They were allowed to walk around, and visit one another. The Dementors patrolled, and fed off of them, but there were so many inmates on this level, and so few Dementors at a time that the Dementors' effects were lessened.

So far, the majority of the new inmates were being sorted into this level.

The second largest group to be sorted out of the new inmates were led to the second level. These people were allowed to walk around, but only at certain times. They usually had short to medium length sentences, and their crimes were only slightly worse than the bottom level people. Usually the craftier thieves, and the people who experimented with magic were put on the second tier.

The third level had a drastically smaller number of inmates than the second or first level. This is where the murderers, Muggle baiters, and other low life criminals lived. They usually had terms that ranged from seven-twenty years. They were only allowed out once a month, and had a personal Dementor guard assigned to them. Very few out of the batch of new inmates were being led up the stairs by their personal Dementor guard to the third level.

But the fourth and highest level was the worst. Sirius, being a high priority prisoner, was on the highest level with the depraved of the depraved; his cousin Bellatrix shared his same level, though that gave him no comfort at all. Very few people came to this level out of each batch of new inmates. This is were the truly evil and cruel people were kept. Mass murderers, traitors, torturers and anybody who had killed in the name of Lord Voldemort were in this cell block. People on this level were never let out. Sirius' level was also the level the Dementors liked to frequent the most; every high priority prisoner was assigned two Dementor guards. So far not one soul out of this batch of new prisoners had been assigned to the fourth level.

The Dementors were flitting around quicker as the sorting continued, and the new inmates were being moved to their assigned levels. Skitty was becoming more restless, sometimes wandering away from its post to get a better look at the new inmates. Smiley on the other hand, tended to constantly turn around, and look in on Sirius. Sometimes Sirius could never understand Smiley, or the creature's motives.

What he did understand was that the Dementors were hungry, and Sirius knew that the few Ministry wizards here would not be able to stop the Dementors if things got out of control. Black felt his heart pound faster. It was the new prisoners' fears that were making the Dementors excited, and since there were so many new inmates, all this situation needed was a catalyst to set off a chain reaction.

As the line of new prisoners began to dwindle down, Black found he was able to breathe easier. The sorting was almost done, and the guest Dementors would leave with the Ministry wizards.

That was what would have happened if only the next prisoner that was called hadn't been called.

The next prisoner was a tall, massive man, whose oily, blond hair covered his malevolent eyes. He was gaunt, and had battle scars running up and down his arms. Sirius could tell that this inmate would not be assigned to level one or two. This one may be a level three or a rare level four inmate. Sirius suddenly noticed the faint Death Eater tattoo marked on the new prisoner's inner forearm.

Sirius saw movement in Bellatrix's cell, which was not too far from his own, as she pulled closer to her cell door. He tensed up, and held his breath as he waited to hear which level this new inmate would be put. The Ministry wizard, who read off the names, seemed to be frightened of the Death Eater, who stared at him defiantly. With trembling lips, the Ministry wizard announced that this prisoner was to put on level four.

The inmate grinned an evil smile as he looked up in the direction of Bellatrix's cell.

"The Dark Lord grows stronger everyday," the Death Eater bellowed. "He will rise again!"

Hiss of anger erupted out of the people on the bottom two levels. The people on those levels were not Death Eaters, just petty criminals, and most were not fans of the Dark Lord. The people on the third and fourth level, though, drowned out the people on the bottom, though they had fewer numbers. The majority of the people on the third and fourth level were Death Eaters. He could hear Bellatrix, a few cells down from him, screaming out her demented thoughts.

Sirius began to edge away from his door. The Dementors were swirling about faster and faster. Soon they would be attacking. The new inmate looked back on the Ministry wizard triumphantly, and then screamed out, "The boy-who-lived is at Hogwarts. Harry Potter's days are numbered! The Dark Lord will not fail to kill him this time!"

An avalanche of discord ricocheted throughout the prison. Sirius found that he had stopped his retreat, instead rushing to his cell door, screaming down at the Death Eater in wild anger, and he was not the only one. The use of Harry's name sparked chaos in Azkaban. The dissenters became wild with anger, and the Death Eaters jeered triumphantly.

But the Dementors were whipped up into a frenzy by the heightened emotions. They zoomed back and forth through the prison. The Ministry wizards knew that control was soon going to be out of their grasp. The lead wizard gave a nod to the Dementors nearest the new inmate who had caused the uproar. Immediately, the group of Dementors swooped in on the new inmate.

Sirius saw no more as he quickly moved away from his door, to the farthest corner of his cell. He knew what was coming. What the Ministry wizards hadn't predicted was what the other Dementors would do. Instead of staying at their assigned posts, the other Dementors began to swoop in on all the prisoners. The feeding frenzy had begun.

Sirius heard the Ministry wizards yell out orders of retreat, and heard the slam of the front door. The prisoners had been left alone with the ravenous Dementors. Sirius watched in horror as his two guards and a few more Dementors floated into his cell. He screamed out in horror, and realized he wasn't the only one who did so.