Bellatrix lay in her bed at Malfoy Manor, staring at the ceiling and waiting for Mr Riddle to come back. He was off talking with Abraxas Malfoy, explaining what had happened.
I can not adequately express how vehemently I oppose this discharge, Healer Mills had said at St Mungo's, and Mr Riddle had replied,
You've done your best. Now let me do mine.
He'd carefully brought her back to Malfoy Manor by Side-Along Apparition, cradling her in his arms, and he'd carried her up to her quarters. They'd gotten her into a nightgown, out of the horrid hospital gown, and had settled her into the bed.
Now the door from the corridor opened and Mr Riddle came walking back in, wearing nothing but a black tunic with the sleeves rolled to his elbows and a pair of linen trousers. He approached Bellatrix's bed, and he sat on the edge near her as he said quietly,
"I suppose you'll want to know more about what I intend on doing to save you."
She coughed ten or twelve times in response. Mr Riddle waited for the fit to pass, and then he Conjured her a handkerchief, for she'd brought up some blood. She wiped it from her lips gratefully and listened as he said,
"The Coalesco Amalgam is, as Healer Mills accused, Dark magic. I learnt about it during my studies of Soul magic on the Continent. It is not illegal, strictly speaking, but it is a widely feared notion because it binds two souls together, and that concept frightens people."
"How does it work?" Bellatrix croaked from where she sat propped against the pillows. Mr Riddle sighed and picked at his trouser leg.
"One person is dying. Another person gives them life. In order for this to happen, the two physical bodies must be intrinsically united. There are desperately vile ways for this to occur… cannibalism, for example."
"We're going to eat each other?" Bellatrix felt horror strike her through, but Mr Riddle choked a laugh and looked up at her. He shook his head and said simply,
"Sex."
She coughed roughly and pointed out, "I'm not in the best shape for sex, am I?"
"I'll be gentle," he insisted. "Our bodies must be together. It's the most pleasant way, even given your condition."
"All right," she nodded, and she coughed again for a long moment. Once the fit passed, she realised there was blood all over her hands, and she gasped. Mr Riddle hurried to Siphon and Scour the blood away, but she looked up at him in terror and murmured, "I really am dying."
"Well, we're not going to let that happen. Once the bodies are united, the Giver of Life - that's me - incants the spells needed to share physical strength and bring back life to the dying party. Luckily for you, I learnt these spells on the Continent, and I remember them."
"Will you be weaker then?" asked Bellatrix worriedly, but Mr Riddle shook his head with confidence.
"No. Because this is an exchange. I give you Life, and you become bound to me. You will never be able to be sexual with anyone else. You will never be able to marry anyone else. You will never be able to follow the orders of anyone else. You will never feel loyalty toward anyone else. And all of these things, you will likely feel very strongly toward me - attraction, devotion, loyalty. Most importantly, if someday I were to perish, you would fall in the same instant."
"So when you die, I'll die," Bellatrix nodded. Mr Riddle tipped his head.
"You don't have to worry about that bit."
"What, are you immortal or something?" Bellatrix joked, coughing a bit. Mr Riddle cleared his throat.
"Something like that."
She narrowed her eyes, confused. Immortal? He seemed serious about it, too. "More Dark magic?" she asked.
"More Dark magic," he affirmed, and Bellatrix just blinked a few times.
"Does that mean I'll be immortal, too?"
"No. You could still be slain in battle, or die of another disease," Mr Riddle said, sounding rather frustrated. "Believe me; I wish it worked that way. Now, there are other… consequences… of the binding. But I don't know what they are. My teacher on the Continent didn't elaborate on everything. So we'll have to learn some of it along the way. But I believe this is a price worth paying to save your life, Bella."
"I can't believe you're doing this for me," she whispered hoarsely, and he said in a low sort of snarl,
"It isn't just for you."
"Right." Bellatrix sighed and lay back, muttering, "Ready for the sex bit whenever you are."
Mr Riddle huffed a breath and unlaced his linen trousers where he sat. He finally rose and came to walk around the bed, slowly climbing up and lying beside Bellatrix. She coughed violently where she lay, knowing she was hardly attractive like this, and she was ashamed to hear Mr Riddle murmur an Erecto charm on himself beside her.
"Come here, please," he said, pulling at her carefully. She hiked up her nightgown, and she whispered desperately,
"I'm dry. I'm sorry."
"Lubrico." His fingers coursed over her folds as he cast the lubrication charm, and she was grateful for the way he paid no heed to her coughing and shaking as he pushed into her. He began to pump his cock in and out, and it felt strange, this sex with no desire. Ordinarily, she'd have wanted him badly, but tonight felt so bizarre. She shut her eyes and tried to breathe, wheezing awfully as he thrust into her, and then she heard him say from behind her,
"I'm going to incant the charms now. Ready?"
"Yes." She choked out the word, and then he began to murmur,
"Dabo tibi animam. Dabo tibi fortitudinem. Dabo tibi salutem. Dabo tibi animam. Dabo tibi fortitudinem. Dabo tibi salutem."
She tried to make sense of the spells he was repeating. Life. Strength. Health. He continued,
"Coalesco, Coalesco. Anima Mea, Animam Tuam. Mulier, Servus Mea In Perpetua. Coalesco, Coalesco."
Suddenly everything went black and cold and empty, and Bellatrix gasped. She felt like she had hit her head on a rock. She blinked her eyes open to see that she was on a beach. It was a cold, empty beach with large black rocks and huge crashing grey waves. She pulled herself to her feet, and as she looked around, she saw a cloaked black figure standing on the rocks in the distance. She began to walk toward the figure, then to run when she realised it was him. Lord Voldemort.
"Sir!" she called, and he slowly turned, pulling down his hood. He was more handsome here - his scars were less pronounced. He climbed slowly down from the rocks and approached Bellatrix on the sand as waves crashed nearby. Bellatrix shivered in the wind. "Where are we?"
"We're in your mind," he said simply. "We'll be out soon."
Bellatrix studied his face, his eyes, and she whimpered a little as she realised she could tell him here what she'd been too much of a coward to tell him in person for weeks.
"I'm in love with you."
"I know you are," he said with a warm little smile. He held her face in his hands and whispered, "You are such a good girl."
"Is there any chance…" Bellatrix's eyes seared. "Could you ever love me back?"
Voldemort sighed heavily and reminded her, "I am giving life of my life. Isn't that enough?"
"Yes, of course, Master," she replied, and the word felt so natural that she hardly noticed she'd said it. He leaned down to kiss her, feeling warm and whole and everything, and then when he pulled away, he said quietly,
"It's time to come back now. To wake up. Shut your eyes, Bella."
She did as he said, and when she did, she felt her ears ring, felt a rushing sensation. She blinked a few times and found herself lying on her back on the bed in Malfoy Manor. It was morning; there was light streaming in through the windows. Lord Voldemort was dressed and pacing beside the bed, and he did not seem to notice that Bellatrix had awakened. He chewed anxiously at a thumbnail as he paced. Bellatrix breathed in and realised just how easy it was to do, just how little effort it took. There was no wheeze.
She was healed.
"Master," she said gently, and he whirled. He stared right at her, seemingly in shock at the word she'd just used. Bellatrix sat up slowly, pushing her curls from her eyes, and she grinned. He laughed, giddy, and rushed over to the bed, crouching down beside her and crushing her mouth with his as he seized her face in his hands. Bellatrix felt a surge of love for him, of admiration and devotion and all the things he'd said she'd feel. And love. She pulled back and wanted to tell him, wanted him to know. She blinked a few times and just nodded.
"Thank you, Master."
Voldemort touched his forehead to hers and whispered, "There will be battles, Bella. And you'll fight in them for me. Won't you?"
"I will live my life for you, Master," she replied, and he kissed her again, more deeply this time.
Author's Note: Sorry for the short chapter, but we had a lot going on here! So, we have some vocabulary changes after this binding. And definitely an amping up of devotion. How will this affect things now that Bellatrix is home from school but also healthy? And what are the other side effects of the binding? Mwah hahahaha.
