Possession
Chapter XXV - Blood Will Bind
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"It's him."

Voldemort turned at the frightened whisper, gesturing with his wand sending a burst of flame to incinerate the pests who were approaching his flank before he descended on the one who had spoken.

The battle was going well. In any battle he was present the opposing forces just didn't have a chance. His red masked Death Eaters were systematically destroying the small pockets of resistance that remained and then they would array the bodies for the Ministry to find, leaving the casting of the Mordesmourth to him. It was evidence enough that he had done this but with a sudden chill smile he felt the urge to leave a more personal message.

And this child, this Auror, who's face was so young that the Dark Lord could almost still smell the old corridors of Hogwarts on him would deliver that message. Voldemort spread his arms, as if in invitation. "It is me, the Dark Lord Voldemort."

The boy Auror crumpled before him, tears streaming down the childish face. "No, no, no... You're not meant to be here."

Voldemort sniffed. "It's only a Muggle building," he agreed casting his eyes back. The building was centuries old and it was burning. It was some Official Government Department that meant nothing to him but covering up this attack would distract the Ministry enough for him.

"You're not meant to be here..." the Auror repeated.

"Oh... So where I am meant to be?" It was amusing the way fear made some people repeat themselves. The boy was still crying and he could smell the thick stench of urine but he was still talking.

"Dead!" There was a tiny flash of anger in the fear.

"I am immortal."

"Dead!"

"Like you are going to be?" The words broke the anger immediately and even though the young Auror had collapsed against a wall, he somehow managed to curl further into himself. "Like you are going to be?" Voldemort repeated when he received no answer past the snivelling of the boy.

There was a choked gasp and the head moved a fraction in agreement and the Dark Lord laughed as two red masked Death Eaters moved to stand by his side, murmuring the word "Master."

"No..." Voldemort hissed the denial softly. "I'm not going to kill you," he added. "You are going to deliver a message for me. What House were you in?"

"H... house?"

"At school child."

"Hufflepuff."

"Ah..." Voldemort nodded to himself. A serviceable enough house and one that explained why the boy had not run despite knowing defeat. His house was loyal, hard working and brave, not to the point of stupidity but enough not to run, to face the end with what dignity could be managed. And smart enough to realise that attacking was not going to work against him unlike a Gryffindor. "Then you will deliver my message."

There was another small nod although he could clearly see that the boy did not believe that he would live past this day.

"Tell Dumbledore the game is nearly over and that soon I will claim my prize," Voldemort looked at the Auror for a moment longer before he turned and raised his hand. Let the Auror and Dumbledore make what they would of this gesture but it was time to display his true power, power that had been on the rise since that girl had bound herself to Harry. She was bound to Harry and only to Harry and thus was bound to serve but that was secondary. He was not going to share his prize and would have killed her but for the fact that in binding herself to Harry, she had completed his bound to Harry and that was allowing both their powers to surge and grow. It was something he'd realised only after he'd chased down the reason his skin had begun itching and it was only more evidence that there was still much he did not understand about the powers of the Founders. In time though... Once his destined mate was at his side, then he would know all. Harry's blood contained power he had never dreamed possible but despite the completed bond the boy remained a blank wall to him. It would take something else to wake him.

"Mordsmorth," he murmured the word and from his fingers the brilliant green of his mark flew and hung in the air, letting all who saw it that he was indeed alive and that nothing would stand in his way.

The skull with it's dead eyes and snake tongue seemed to laugh, and throughout the burning building the Death Eaters apparated away, leaving only one trembling Auror, huddled in a corner, crying at the power that he had felt and for the world that was lost.

---

Ginny was at a loss... She'd done as she'd been instructed. There'd been a strange compulsion to obey the Dark Lord's orders and she'd had to fight it slightly so that she wasn't caught. His voice echoing through her head was strong but her love for Harry was stronger and she'd traded off her decision with his orders so that in the end, the voice had been silent, admitting that it was better if she wasn't caught.

Yet.

But Ginny wasn't worried about that. As long as she succeeded she would handle being caught, she would even handle being known as the Dark Lord's servant even though she bore no mark but right at the moment she was at an impasse.

Harry was still lying before her, unmoving as he stared up at the ceiling but resting on the bed beside him were two vials of blood. Even though it had hurt to do it, she had cut Harry and carefully collected every drop of blood spilt into the second vial. When she had enough she'd tipped it into a bowl, before adding the Dark Lord's blood.

She wasn't sure if she'd been expecting anything to happen at the instant the blood mixed but she had chosen a room far from prying eyes just in case. It had been an unnecessary precaution because the blood had done nothing but swirl together, diffusing into each other until it was just one red liquid. Then she'd bottled it back up in the two vials, washing out the bowl thoroughly so that no evidence could be found. And that's when her problem had started.

How was she meant to call the Dark Lord?

If she had the Mark it would have been easy but she didn't and she wasn't likely to get it in the near future but she still needed to obey him. 'Call him.' She'd already tried reaching out with her mind but had met with only emptiness. She had to obey. She had to find a way.

For Harry's sake...

Harry.

With a grim smile she realised exactly how she could call the Dark Lord. She could hear Voldemort's rich voice. 'Harry is bonded to me and I am tied to him...'

She closed her eyes focusing on her bond with Harry. It was still a blank nothingness but it was a wall she could use to contact Voldemort. Ginny paused for an instant, frowning. What was she going to call him?

Master..?

No! He was not her master.

Tom Riddle..?

That wouldn't do either, not if she wanted to live to see Harry awaken.

My Lord..?

It wasn't really appropriate because as Voldemort was not her Master, he was also not her Lord.

But she couldn't think of anything else. Dark Lord Voldemort was too formal and a simple Voldemort was too informal. With an annoyed growl she shook her head. It didn't really matter what she called him, she just needed to get his attention so that he would know she had done what had been requested and then he could come and complete the spell and awaken Harry.

:My Lord..: Her first call was tentative but there was a flicker of response. It wasn't his full attention but he was aware of her and his presence alone was enough to make her shiver. :My Lord: she began again, feeling more confident. :I've collected and mixed the blood as you requested. Harry is alone at the moment so it is safe for you to come.:

:I will be there shortly, child.: The brief communication was all the response she got before all sense of the Dark Lord's presence disappeared.

Ginny breathed a sigh of relief as she collected the vials, putting them back into her robes. It would be over soon. Harry would be awake and then everything would be fine. She sank into the chair beside Harry's bed, taking his hand and waited.

"Snuffles!" Ginny exclaimed loudly when a cold wet nose jolted her out of the half doze she had settled in to.

The large black dog examined her before he turned and looked at Harry before giving a strange sigh for a dog and jumping lightly on to the bed, curling up at Harry's feet and giving every indication that he was going to stay there.

How could she have forgotten Sirius?

Ginny almost screamed in frustration. Getting around Sirius had been her major problem before casting the bonding spell and she'd had to drug his food to get to Harry to take his blood. Now the Dark Lord was coming and it would be over Sirius' dead body before Voldemort got within spitting distance of Harry again. But that would just hurt Harry further.

What was she going to do? Somehow she had to get him out of here...

But for the life of her she couldn't think how. There wasn't any story she could think of that would convince him to leave, short of Dumbledore himself walking through the door and asking Sirius to accompany him, the large black dog was not moving.

This is bad, this is bad, this is bad, this is...

"Stupefy."

The curse was so soft that she almost didn't hear it and she really only knew it had hit because of the soft yelp Snuffles emitted accompanied by a jump in position before he lay completely still.

"I should have expected Dumbledore wouldn't allow my precious to be unaccompanied now."

Ginny looked up, fully awake now and saw the Dark Lord standing in the door way. His robes were as rich as always but unlike all the other times she had seen him, they were not spotless. They were splattered in dark red and she knew it was blood. He had come straight from battle but the evidence of it did not detract from his power. With a regal air he stepped into the room, his crimson eyes softening as he looked at Harry. "You have done well, child," he said as she handed over the vials but he didn't look at her. A gentle hand stroked Harry's hair and it seemed that he was delicately sampling the air.

The little serpent crawled out from behind Harry, hissing softly and Voldemort nodded at it extending his free hand for the little snake to crawl up before it coiled itself around his arm.

Ginny backed away to the corner watching with a surge of jealousy the ease with which the Dark Lord touched Harry but after a moment he shifted, his robes rustling slightly with the movement. With a small surge of magic the two vials levitated before him and he unstoppered them breathing deeply as he assessed their aroma. Voldemort nodded to himself, his eyes intent as he drew out another vial of blood from which he carefully poured a small measure into the vials containing his and Harry's blood.

A strange half smile crossed his features as the vials glowed before returning to normal. Then the Dark Lord put his arms around Harry and gently pulled him into an upright position before sitting next to the boy and supporting his weight. He plucked one vial from the air and placed it at Harry's mouth, helping him drink it. Once the first vial was empty, the Dark Lord took the second vial and downed it with a gulp.

After a moment he licked his lips and gestured at the now empty vials obliterating them entirely. Finally the Dark Lord looked at her, after shifting Harry so that he was cradled against his bulk. "You have done well, child," he repeated.

She nodded in response. There wasn't a lot she could say.

He gave her a slightly speculative look. "I will not Mark you, child," he said after a moment.

"I know," Ginny said. She did know. She was far too valuable to Mark and her loyalty was to the boy sleeping in his arms, not to him and as such his Mark would be forced upon her.

Voldemort looked down at Harry, breathing in the scent of his hair. "He will awaken in the morning but first I would like a like some time with him. It's been too long."

Ginny knew better than to argue but she felt that she had to give some warning. "Please be careful. I don't know what other charms Dumbledore has in place." She moved towards Snuffles, intending to take him with her but the Dark Lord's reaction surprised her.

"What's so funny?" She snapped.

"You precious faith in Dumbledore," he looked back at her with an amused expression. "It was far easier than even I believed for me to get in here. I took such care the first time... But he has changed the wards since then and made it even easier. So long as I do not desire to harm the school or anyone here I may come and go as I please."

"But don't you want to kill Dumbledore?"

Voldemort half closed his eyes as he wrapped his arms tighter around Harry. "I can control my desires," he said softly in a voice more like a child's than the most feared man in the Wizarding World.

"Ah..." Ginny nodded as she struggled to pick up Snuffles.

It was the Dark Lord's turn to be surprised. "Why take the dog?"

"You want to be alone."

"You can leave the Guardian."

In that instant she knew. Petrigrew had betrayed his friends but even now he was holding out on his master. "You would like me to leave you with Sirius Black?" She asked with a sceptical tone.

He didn't even blink but he understood. "Ho..." Was all the response she got but it was enough for her to shudder at what she imagined Wormtail's fate was going to be. "Take him," Voldemort added as he turned back towards Harry ignoring her completely as she left, the powers within merging.

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