"Alright," said Voldemort, twirling his wand between his long, pale fingers. "Bite me now, or watch your twin put through the curse. Again."

Severus was tied to a chair. His body was drenched in sweat, and his shirt torn. His head hung down, the hair greasier and soaking wet. He looked up with hollow eyes, bruises around them.

"Please," he whispered.

Winter was torn in two. One side wanted to bite him so she didn't have to watch Severus suffer. But the other side knew how stupid that was.

"I can't," she said. "I can't."

"Crucio," said Voldemort with sadistic glee.

"ARGH!" cried Severus, his back arching. The look of pain on his face was so intense. Tears streamed down his face.

"Stop! Please!" she screamed. "Give me another day. Please!"

"Fine," hissed Voldemort and shot one last spell at Severus. He reeled again and then lay still.

Voldemort walked out, and Winter undid the ropes around his wrists and ankles. She picked him up and took him upstairs, past the Death Eaters and Malfoy family. She took him into her bathroom and placed him on the floor, against the wall.

"I'm so sorry," she whispered, cleaning his bleeding wrists and ankles. "I can't bite him."

"I know," he said, his voice cracking. "He'd be impossible to defeat."

He started coughing, and Winter sat him up. She placed him back once he finished and wiped his face. Severus closed his eyes and leaned his head back.

"I can't live through this," he whispered. "It feels like . . . like he never died."

Winter sat in front of him and pressed a hand to a bleeding spot on his arm.

"I know, Sev," she said. "But remember that letter you sent me? Around Christmas last year? I wanted to die. I relived seeing you and Mum hurt every day, and simply sitting there. I remembered how he never laid a finger on me and simply laughed at me when I crawled to one of you to help you. I wanted to die so badly when I was there."

Winter paused and wiped a few tears away from Severus's cheeks.

"But that letter. Seeing you write 'I love you' was the only thing that kept me alive. You saying you needed me. That kept me going. It kept me wanting to live. It kept me living. And Severus, I love you, and I want you to live. I need you. And you need me."

Winter lifted her shirt a little to show the jagged scar on her stomach. There were two people that knew about the scar: her and Severus. And Severus had one to match.

"We're still connected, even if the tissue and skin isn't. We were joined at birth, and we'll be joined in death and life. Although, it'll be awhile before I die. But if you go before me, I'll live with a void, a terrible absence in my life. Forever. I need you to live until you're a thousand and two. Or longer. So don't do anything stupid, okay?"

She dropped her shirt again and started running the water in the tub.

"You're right, Winter," he said. "I felt the same when you were in Azkaban. Every day, I was sure you were dead. But when they finally brought you back . . . It was amazing. I felt whole again."

Winter hugged her brother and lifted his head over the water. She was going to wash his hair. She dipped his head into the water and pulled it back out.

As she washed his hair, she sang that one song that always made him feel better.

"Once in a million years,
I come across
Someone like you

"You never left me
And I never left you
Through thick and thin
I was there

"You told stories
Of hell
That I never thought were true
Until the day I found out

"The truth is hard to deal with
When you're living it
Hell is you're only friend
But somehow
You make it through

"I know you can
Get past the plans
That he made for you

"Just let me help
And maybe
And just maybe

"We can make it
Through the end"

"How touching," said a voice from behind.

Severus jerked his head back, water spraying everywhere, and Winter spun around. Voldemort stood there, clapping his hands.

"How beautiful," he said. "You have a wonderful voice, Winter."

"Go away," said Winter, breathing slowly, trying to control the anger flaring inside her.

"Why should I, darling?" he said. He just loved to use endearing words on her. It made Winter want to scream.

"What do you want?" she asked, sighing and standing up. "Bite you? Kill you? What?"

"Bite me, of course, but you have one more day," he said. "But how do you like the idea of becoming a vampire bride?"

"What are you on?" said Winter in disgust, pulling her body visibly back, putting more space between them.

"Well, maybe if I can't be bitten, I can at least have a vampire fitting for me," he said. He approached and ran a finger over her jaw. Winter jerked her head back.

"Don't touch me," she snarled. "And get out."

"Oh, Winter," he chuckled and disappeared.

"That son of a bitch!" shouted Winter. "I'm not marrying him! He's, like, old enough to be my father – well, our father. And I'm not even on his side!"

"Winter, hush," hissed Severus. "He'll hear you. Or someone else will. You're never safe, Winter. Never."

"I don't want to fight for him. I don't want to bite him. I do not want to be his bride," whispered Winter, sniffling and blinking hard.

Severus pulled her into a hug.

"I know," he said. "I don't want you to, either. But I want you to, too. I can't stand being abused . . . again. It's hell. I've had nightmares every night since he started."

Winter sighed. She leaned back against the sink.

"It's hell simply being here," she said. "But I know there's a way to get through this. There has to be. There's never a problem without a solution. Or at least I think so."

"We shall see, Winter," he said. "We shall see."

As time passed, Severus grew weaker. The pain he went through every day was more than he wanted to deal with. One day, Winter snapped.

"I am sick and tired of all this crap!" she shouted at dinner. She stood up, knocking her chair over. She sprang onto the table, landing directly in front of Voldemort. She grabbed him by the collar, causing him to merely raise his eyebrows. "This is your fault, bastard! You're so bent on having your way and you can't see anyone else's view! You demand to be a vampire, and for me to be your bride, and fight for you! I HATE YOU! I lied! I never wanted to help you! I rather die!"

Winter threw him, and he smashed into the wall. He simply stood up and dusted himself off.

"Winter, you know the power I have-"

"And you know the power I have," she hissed. She grabbed the nearest Death Eater and plunged her fangs into his neck, sucking him dry. She dropped him at her feet, her lips shining with his blood. And she stood up.

She looked like a vampire out of every movie. Her blood red eyes shown with malice. Her fangs protruded from her mouth, blood dripping from them. Blood was even running down from the corners of her mouth. She clenched her fists and kicked the body away.

"And you keep having the audacity to think I will do what you want," she said, stepping off the edge of the table lightly. "Well, not everything will go according to your plan."

Winter laughed and grabbed him roughly, plunging her teeth into his neck.