The cold bit into her bones as her eyes slowly looked skyward to take in the enormous grey bricked building. She felt a poke in her ribs to keep moving, the building was new, but the cold was always the same. Ginger Nuts was behind her, his mouth magically sealed shut as he had been crying and howling on the boat. She wanted to look back at him, reassure him it would only be for a week or so, but she could not turn. She had tried to catch his eye in the boat, but he was crying too much to take notice of anything much.

"Wizards to the right, witches to the left." The head guard spoke in a bored drawling voice.

This was new, all of Bella's previous stints she had never been put in the with the general population. She looked slightly confused and was met with a chuckle from her minder.

"Ain't a five-star hotel Black. Keep moving." He jabbed her in the ribs again.

Bella fought back a retort but continued to move behind the grey-haired witch who was being processed for selling fake love potions.

"Well-well-well, Bellatrix Black and in general population no less. Who the fuck you piss off?" Office Grimes grunted as she stood in front of his desk.

"My sister in law." She said, slightly relieved, she liked Grimes. "Is this standard procedure now to put Aurors in with the general population?" She questioned while Grimes began writing up her form.

"Specific orders for you and Mr. Weasley and besides, you ain't an Auror in here Black." his voice held a slightly apologetic tone to it. "You watch yourself in there, you're not the most popular witch."

He began making her id board for the photo, "Let's see…" He rummaged through his list for the day, "Nauthiz Isa Fehu 93." He called out to the woman behind the camera.

The woman nodded and wrote on her list quickly as Bella was pulled over to the wall and made to hold the id board. "Now smile for the camera dearie." The old woman said through broken brown teeth.

Bella remained stoic as the camera flashed. She handed the board back to Grimes and waited for her scroll of parchment.

"Down the end of the hall to your left." He said as he held it out to her. "And remember what I said Black, watch yourself."

Bella did not reply as she took the scroll and watched as her wand was handed over to Grimes. "12 ¾ inch, walnut with dragon heartstring. We'll keep her safe for you." As her wand was secured into a box she was waved away from the desk.

Through the door she was led down the corridor and passed through another at the end on her left. She froze when it was opened and then pushed back as if to run, her minder stumbled back as she pushed back harder. "No, no, no, no…" She said as she felt her legs being kicked from under her.

"Stay down." He said with his knee in her back as the sound of boots came from all directions. She felt more wands digging into her skin as she was slowly lifted. "Now, if you so much as breathe wrong, I will stun you, understand?"

"Yes." Bella whispered hoarsely. She was roughly pushed through the door and forced to sit in a chair. A short wizard was standing on a step stool with a magical razor in his hand.

"Make is nice and short Paulie." Bella's minder said before he clamped the braces over her hands to keep her from moving. "She gives you any trouble, stun her."

The minder left the room to stand in the hall. Bella stared in the mirror and watched in silent horror as the razor moved over her black hair. Her curls fell to the floor and were magicked away in less than three minutes.

Paulie exited the room through a different door and returned with a quill and read over her scroll of parchment.

"Right or left?" He asked dipping the quill and suspending it waiting for her answer.

"W-what?" She asked, her mouth dry suddenly.

"Nauthiz Isa Fehu 93, left or right?" He repeated indifferently.

"I-" She started-

"Left then." Paulie replied standing again on the stool and pushed Bella's head over to the right. "Mind you hold tight, they say this burns like hell." He said as he touched the quill to her neck.

Bella squeezed her eyes shut. The fire started from the tip of the quill and ran down her neck to her arms. It felt like liquid fire moving through her bones as he burned the runes into her skin. "Now, don't go touchin it and gettin' it infected." Paulie said as he finished the bottom of the 3. "Lucky you're here early today, I actually take care when I mark a prisoner, Greg now, he just will quickly do a job, don't care about the look of it. Why make it sloppy I said to him, prisoner got to have this mark forever, ain't no magicking this mark off even when ya get out of this place. That's you done my dear." He stepped down from the stool and tossed the quill in the rubbish bin. "It's got a magical tracker in that so even if you got the mind to swim off this rock we'd find you in no time."

Bella's head was fuzzy as she tried to respond. She couldn't make her mouth move to form words, what the hell had he done to her?

"Ah that's right, don't try to talk that's the potion taking over. You'll wake up in a few hours."

Bella's eyes closed into sweet darkness, she felt herself being lifted from the chair and then nothing.