The story and plot are mine, the characters are not. (Except Aurelia:))

Enjoy!

Aurelia awoke with a gasp. She sat up instantly, noticing the sheets falling around her.

She furrowed her brow as she stood, wincing in pain when her weight shifted onto her legs. The witch pushed on, moving slowly towards the large mirror in the room. Her body barred the horrific newly formed scars from the ritual but-

"It worked." She gasped, pulling her hand to her lips. Slowly pulling her hand from them, she ran her fingers down the scared over runes on her arm, feeling her newfound strength coursing through her.

"Indeed."

Aurelia jumped at the deep voice which called from behind her, spinning around instantly to find him standing a few feet away. Voldemort looked much the same as before: tall, dark, and utterly regal. He looked the small witch up and down once before frowning and motioning to her body with one of his drastically pale hands. "Sit. Pushing yourself to stand will damage what little healing has already begun."

The Black bit her lip in thought but decided that it was best to simply follow his instructions. It was odd enough that she wasn't left in that clearing and odder still that she had woken in a... bedroom? Her brow furrowed.

She turned to make her way to the sitting area of the room, noting the elegant decor of the room. It was extremely large; between the bed and the fire, there were two armchairs with a table between them. She sat in the left chair, weighing that since he hadn't moved specifically to one of them, it didn't matter where she sat. He moved to sit across from her in silence.

The pair sat in uncomfortable silence for a few moments, as Voldemort again looked over the small witch curled up on the leather. Aurelia did her best not to shift under his gaze, remaining motionless as she waited for him to speak.

Then, he did. "You seem to have taken the damage as well as can be expected. You will need to abstain from casting for a few days if you would rather not overextend your core. However, your body will have almost replenished itself completely while you were unconscious. I would advise that-"

"Wait," Aurelia cut into his sentence worriedly. "How long was I out?"

Voldemort tilted his head, thinking, before he said hesitantly, "About 9 days, I suppose."

"Then today is 12 July?"

"Yes."

"Oh, Merlin." Aurelia dropped her face to her hands. "I have to meet with Dumbledore in two days at Grimuald. He wants to use it as a headquarters still."

"I see," Voldemort leaned back in thought, ruby eyes narrowing slightly at her. "You still plan to align yourself with him?"

The dark-haired witch scoffed, shaking her head in her hands, "Merlin, no. I just... I didn't know what to do. I just wanted him to leave me alone for a while."

There was silence again as Aurelia's thoughts roared in her own head, unsure of how to continue. She hated Dumbledore but knew that he would go to great lengths to get what he wanted, and now that the Ministry was on his side once more, their involvement would be inevitable and lead to even more issues. Her thoughts turned to the wizard before her again. He had brought her here when he could've simply left her in those woods. Which meant that he clearly was either intrigued with her stupidity or perhaps he was willing to strike some sort of bargain with her. Lord Voldemort aligned himself with Dark families, and none was stronger in such magic than the Blacks. Maybe... maybe this could work. Of course, Aurelia didn't agree with all of his methods, but the power he attained was undeniable.

Biting her lip in consideration, she realized that she hadn't heard a single thought from him since she awoke- since she had met him, in fact. How odd, as the witch had always sensed other's thoughts- natural occlumency, that was her curse. It was never truly quiet unless she was alone, even Dumbledore's mind emitted an indistinguishable murmur to her own when he was near. But not him. Curious, she narrowed her eyes at the Dark Lord, attempting to enter his mind even a bit. Just a nudge to aid her decision.

However, there was nothing. Instead, the man simply quirked his brow at her, and smirked, "It isn't polite to enter one's hosts' mind, little witch."

She blushed, embarrassed by her own idiocy. "My apologies, sir."

She contemplated her options only a moment longer. The silence proved to encourage her, allowing the witch to weigh out the pros and cons of each idea. Either she could go off on her own in her search for power, or make an alliance with the power-mad wizard before her. Either join him or be alone, again.

"I will serve you," Aurelia broke the silence, pulling herself from the comforting leather of the chair and onto her knee, her body protested against her movements in pain, but she did not falter, she couldn't. She had chosen her side when she went through with the ritual, and now the commitment had to be seen through. "My Lord, I will do everything in my power to aid you and kill every last one of those blood traitors."

He simply cocked his head at her, red eyes narrowing, "But you don't believe that Aurelia, do you?"

She raised her head in shock. He was supposed to take her profession as he had any other Death Eater, without question. "What?"

"Blood Traitors." He clarified, motioning for her to return to her spot on the couch. She did. "I don't believe that you agree with that sentiment."

"Does it matter?" She nearly spat. "Does it? So long as I am against the old man, I don't care."

"Darling," He leaned back in his chair, conjuring a tea tray with a flick of his hand. "Let me be clear. I brought you back here because I saw the potential to negotiate a sort of... alliance with you. That requires the truth from us both."

She was quiet, unsure. This was unfamiliar to her. Usually, she just said whatever the other wanted to hear, like Dumbledore with his precious mudbloods, and it worked. Honesty had never helped her... but what was there to lose? "Ok. I- alright. I do not agree with the term. I believe that 'blood traitors' are either cowardly, manipulated, or misinformed. I think only the former should be labeled as such."

"Understandable." He moved his fingers with swift ease as he prepared his tea wandlessly. Calling his cup to his hand, he returned his gaze to her, "Do you wish to associate with me? Be honest, I'll know if you are lying."

"Yes. I believe that you understand what I want. We can help each other." Aurelia decided to ignore the idle threat, smiling sweetly at him through her eyes that flashed mischievously.

"I have plenty of wands at my disposal, little witch. I am willing to offer you a place among my ranks depending on your own behavior and intent, but what exactly can you offer me in return?" He stated seriously, getting down to business. This was not how anyone had ever described him, being so forward; she had always heard him to be manipulative and deceitful, not so... blunt.

"I'm strong, the nymphs saw to that." She smirked, bringing her own teacup into both hands. "I am the heir to an ancient bloodline, but you know that as well."

He hummed and nodded, seeming almost bored.

"But I think you'll find that my position in the Order of the Pheonix would be most useful. Dumbledore sees me as nothing but a rich airhead, and my past friendship with Potter, as well as my father's loyalty, has secured a place for me in the Order." She smiled proudly when she saw his smirk return, knowing that was what he had wanted, that she had piqued his interest. "If I were to allow their use of my house as Headquarters, as much as I despise the thought, I would have access to all of their conversations and plans and... silly little attempts against you. Grimuald place does have ears you know, with the right spells, I could know everything that is said within my walls, and they would suspect nothing of Sirius' meek daughter."

Now, his smirk was quite evident, and he laughed. She would have thought that his laugh would be terrifying and menacing, yet to her, the sound made her smile. "Not an airhead at all, my little witch. That would be... very acceptable, a source from the inside that no one would suspect."

They continued to plan together for the better part of two hours, Aurelia curling into the seat lazily as she threw out suggestions to gain more information, and him altering them to fit his plans. He told her of Draco's mission, of the Death Eater's posts for the coming year since the Battle of the Ministry had exposed them. She was to warn them of any suspicions that would expose them further, and lead the Order into a goose chase. She half-jokingly told him that she wished to turn each and every member against one another, yet Voldemort did not shut down the idea completely. He merely chucked and considered ways to gently push them over the edge.

She sipped her tea once more before something occurred to her. Her eyes widened, as she realized the state she had left her home in. "My lord," she said nervously, "Do you have anti-apparition wards on this place?"

"No," He drawled, "But there are enough wards to ensure that no one finds it."

"Good. Kreacher!" She called. She noticed that Voldemort did nothing to stop her, simply watching her every move as she sat straighter and adjusted her clothes. There was a loud POP and her old house elf bowed before her.

"Yes, Mistress Black." Kreacher stood warily before his mistress, then suddenly noticed the presence of Lord Voldemort. He shuffled back a few steps and returned his wide eyes to Aurelia. "Mistress..."

"Yes, Kreacher, I am quite aware." The dark-haired witch rolled her eyes, before motioning him closer to her. She held out her hand. "You are under obligation to my House to follow my orders, yes?" The elf nodded slowly. "Perfect. Kreacher, I ask you to vow to me that you will not speak a word of my actions these past weeks, nor any inclination of the Dark Lord's involvement."

He warily grasped her hand and did as his Mistress asked. When it was done, he kneeled again, this time there was honor in his movements as if he was proud to be a part of her bidding. "What may Kreacher do for you, Mistress Aurelia?"

"Albus Dumbledore will be arriving at Grimuald Place tomorrow. I need you to clean everything, erase all evidence of what I have done, and hide anything of value. You will act as you always have, towards me, and most certainly towards them, do you understand?"

"Yes. Kreacher goes now. Kreacher helps his Mistress." He turned to the Dark Lord, nodding deeply before apparating away.

The Lord in question smirked, returning his eyes to the witch, "I had not realized that elf was still alive."

"Yes," Aurelia giggled softly, "He is quite old, but he is very useful now."

There were a few moments of silence, and Aurelia leaned back once more, feeling a wave of drowsiness wash over her. She blinked her heavy lids a few times, before pushing herself to the edge of the seat, preparing to get up and leave. But before she could stand, he rose and offered his hand to her, helping the dark-haired witch stand and taking notice of her weak movements.

"You shouldn't travel like this." He frowned as he said it, almost too quiet for her to hear. Then he nodded, so small a movement that it wouldn't have been noticed if she wasn't standing so near to him.

"Take off the shirt." His red eyes pierced into hers as he commanded her to remove her clothing. She cocked her head to the side, but before she could say anything, he interjected, "Those will need to be healed, otherwise that old fool will sense the ritual's effects."

"I can easily do it." The witch felt a raging blush rise to her cheeks at the thought of removing her clothing in front of him, again.

"You would diminish your strength again if you were to even try"

She nodded, accepting defeat before reaching down to pluck the buttons open, her fingers trembling as she did. It wasn't that she was nervous, because in truth he had seen her before. It was a simple fact that she knew the pain that fast healing like this would cause, and to be nearly naked and withering in pain before he was so vulnerable.

Voldemort's eyes did not leave her fingers as he stated, "It will hurt, little dove. Any pain potions-"

"Will relax the effects of the healing spells performed." She finished his sentence, without thinking. She released the final button, shrugging the dark material from her shoulders and straightening her posture. "I know. I read it before."

He looked her up and down before gesturing to the bed. She nodded and silently limped to the bed, sitting down on the dark silk. In a moment he was before her, his wand out.

He started right away, his long fingers grabbed her arm gently and used his other to trace his wand over the runes. A blaring pain rang through her forearm as the magic took its place, and without thinking, she grits her teeth and hissed lowly.

"You are using nonverbal?" She asked, trying to distract herself from the pain. He only nodded. She watched him work the entire time, flawlessly moving his wand as her skin returned to its normal shade.

When her arms were done, he guided her to lie in the middle of the bed and began tracing the marks on her legs. Next was her back, and this time she rolled without a gesture from him. She curled into a fetal position and grabbed the sheets before her in pain as he healed her.

She only broke her trance when he moved beside her, then swiftly pulled her to his lap. Her back was pressed against his front, leaving her newly healed flesh with a pleasantly cool sensation that she pondered if its cause was the silk of his robes or his skin beneath. Trying to dispel the thought, she whispered, "The last one?"

"Yes." He hissed into her ear, tracing her stomach lightly with his fingers. "This one will be the worst, as your core, your lifeforce, resides here. I suggest grasping something, darling."

Aurelia nodded and the stubbornness in her pride soared. She didn't need aid, she was a Black damnit. She gritted her teeth to prepare when he started. This one was definitely the worst, she understood, as the pain caused her vision to swoon. She screamed this time, throwing her head back to his chest and her hands flew to his shirt and arm, squeezing to try and release some of the pain. He glanced at her for only a second before continuing, and Aurelia passed out from the pain.

Hope you guys are enjoying this, it's been a while and I don't think I can promise scheduled uploading, I'm sorry! But I hope to work on this more, this story holds a special place in my heart. If you have questions leave them in a review and I will answer!

Please review! I always love to hear from you guys. And as always, Love ya!

-ijustlovelove