When the house finally went quiet, the screams and running stopped and ceased, she opened her eyes, the first thing she saw was the face of her old supervisor. Light, curly brown hair that he always liked to let grow until his wife pleaded for him to cut, blue eyes frozen, unfocused, looking at her without actually looking.

It made her skin crawl. He had a child.

He seemed to be, somehow, blaming her for something she was not guilty of.

She scratched her cheek, the dry blood itched uncomfortably. The blood had stopped running when Voldemort had come around to kiss her before going after the runners.

A quick kiss holding the promise that he was going to be back, she telling him to hurry and that they had to end it that day.

Ginny crossed the room, pulling his diadem from her head, stopping to untangle it from her red hair with an annoyed sigh, and walked down the hallway.

She knew exactly where he was, today she would be able to pinpoint him on a map, even if he was hiding inside a cave in the depths of Earth. She could feel he was walking to her, walking up the stairs in the bottom of the hallway.

She readied herself, every muscle of her body tensing. She was scared and her breathing was starting to grow faster.

He had stopped at the top of the stairs, sitting down. She expected to see him grinning at her, triumphant, an aura of smug glory around him. It couldn't be more different. His head was bent, his hand rested on the back of his neck. He was as tense as her.

Ginny sat beside him, resting her arms on her knees. "I think this is yours." She passed the Diadem to him and he gave her a small smile.

"Thank you." He hold the Diadem with both hands for a moment, the light reflecting on the metal, pale and cold, enclosing a piece of himself. "I found the locket as well." The chain hanged from his neck, the locket dandling free in front of his chest.

They stayed in silence, just there, enjoying their last moment of freedom. A veil of sadness lingered over them, disappointment and hopelessness. Ginny wished she had been wrong, that somehow, they could have done something to prevent this.

She wished she could have helped more, but if one of the brightest wizards to live in the century could not help them, she, a Quidditch player turned Auror, could do even less.

Bonded. Mated to Lord Voldemort. It was going to break her mother's hearth when she found out they had not been able to stop the Bracelet's spell.

She rose just enough to turn and kneel beside him, putting her hand on his shoulder. It was time.

At least, from now on, she could protect her family. Her suffering was his suffering, maybe she could change him. She moved his hair from his face, his cheeks were as stained as hers but she couldn't actually read what was going through his cold blue eyes. There was still a bit of red here and there, remembering her of who was actually under her touch.

She felt grateful that the Bracelets had changed him, she would not like to have to touch what the body he took from that cauldron so many years ago. White skin, more bones then muscles, she was sure his touch would be cold. With no lips to kiss, he would bite her until she was gone.

He sighed, and put the Diadem on the step below his legs.

It was time.

There was nothing else they could do. He could feel their magic interlocking, bonding them together forever and ever.

He turned to face her. There was nothing he wanted more then to touch her, that was true, feel her skin against his, feel her lips, but there was something to be said before.

There was more to this, so much more then maybe she was realising.

Bonded wizards tended to not outlive their partner for very long, How was her mortality going to affect him after this? How was he going to protect himself now? If someone took her and killed her, he would die the same instant.

He had never looked into any of this, he never planned to bond with a witch.

Tom pulled Ginny to him and kissed her, mechanically, exactly the opposite of what he wanted to. She leaned back and he could feel her restrain.

"I never hated you more." She muttered, looking away to the bottom of the stairs a grim on her face.

Voldemort run his fingers through his hair, trying to put the wet tresses away from his face. Beside him, Ginny was playing with the Bracelets, making them turn in her fingers.

They were sitting in the steps of the attic. He had taken her there, away from the death that he had spread on the floors bellow to reach her. The bond had demanded to be consummated and it didn't had not been quite there during it, he could say she was not comfortable in that house, but they didn't had anywhere else to go.

Once they got back to London, things would not stop for a while.

His thoughts ran wild, as he measured his options. What do next? How to regain absolute control of the Ministry after his absence? How to use his bond with the Weasley girls to his advantage? How to protect her so that he would not get hurt with her? What to do with her?

"Ups..." She said when one of the bracelets went loose and fell down the stairs, jumping down from a step to the other and to the other, stopping when it hit the wall and taking his thoughts with down with it, the smidge of anxiety that was raising on his chest.

Bonded to a girl a quarter his age, nothing but a child compared with him, with his youth looks hiding his almost eighty years old.

Both looked at it roll down, in silence and a hint of awkwardness.

"I will never love you." She told him, getting up to go get the bracelet. Turning around with disdain on her face to look at him. She had told him that four times since they had finished the bonding ritual.

"Hmm?" He looked at her with a frown and rolled his eyes, his thoughts had been somewhere between the way the dress fitted around her waist and what he needed to do next. "Weasley, the only thing I want from you, is for you to not be in my way." He got up as well, walking down the stair to meet her, finally deciding what to do. "I need to go back to the Ministry," he put his hand on her lower back, pulling her along with him down the steps. "Remember," he stopped, and bopped her nose with the tip of his index, a smirk on his lips, "you are now Lord Voldemort's wife."

Her eyes opened in surprise and she gasped, the realization of her status catching up with her. She knew, of course she knew, but it was completely different to hear it from him. Ginny felt her legs go weak and he pressed her closer to him.

"Try to act accordingly."

THE END