They know him the world over, for the things he has done. The way he has changed everything. And he knows how to play his cards right; how to scour through the loyal and turn away the unfaithful, how to speak to the right witches and wizards, how to lead an attack into the heart of a protected area and still succeed.

He knows what he is doing. And, she knows, that even if he doesn't he will excel at anything he sets his mind to, because that is just who he is It is who he has always been, at Hogwarts, after Hogwarts, even in his almost-death. He commands respect, by virtue of just being himself.

In her eyes, he is perfect. And she will never be equal to him. Every moment spent with him is a wish for her to gain some semblance of him, but she never succeeds, in all those years.

Sometimes, she consoles herself. Why would he pick her, out of them all, if she was but nothing? She must have had something, anything, to make him see her differently... But there are other times when her desperation comes out as rage and sadness. She can try all she wants, she thinks, and yet she will never reach him. Perhaps she will die trying.

Because, at the end of the day, he sits on the throne he has carved for himself, surrounded by his followers and who is she?

Not good enough.


Notes: Just a little snippet of what Bellamort's relationship could have been like, from Bella's POV!