Disclaimer - Harry Potter is not mine. A girl can dream, though.

This is also AU, and started before Book 7 so it is NOT DH-compliant. This chapter is written mostly in the present tense as an experiment, so please let me know if you catch any errors. (It's un-betaed, as usual.)

The final chapter! ::throws confetti::

Chapter 10

"Yes, Harry. I'm right here." Her words may have been meant for Harry, but her eyes were fixed on Tom, who was also watching her approach with a calculated and angry look. Ginny stopped about three feet away from Harry and Tom, and from the inside of her cloak she drew a dagger, that gleamed dangerously in the soft morning light. "Let him go, Tom, or I end this right here." Ginny then calmly raise the dagger to rest, ominously, on her neck.

It is time to end this, once and for all, Ginny thinks to herself. I will find freedom, however this may end. Her grip on the knife tightens. For now, she controls her own fate.

- - -

In the deepest corner of his mind, Tom knew it was incredibly clichéd. But when he saw Ginevra appear on the lawn of Little Hangleton and pulled the dagger to her neck, his heart clutched in his chest.

Inwardly, he snorts. This is what she had reduced me to, nothing but a pathetic cliché.

He looks to her calmly, though he is not completely successful in keeping the anger at her betrayal out of his eyes. Ginevra stands tall and proud, the mild wind twirling tendrils of her unbound hair like dozens of tiny charmed snakes. Her eyes shines with stubbornness and determination, and she is tense as she locks eyes with Tom. She says nothing further, but the message is clear. It is either Harry's life, or mine.

As often as the case when the girl was involved, Tom's world shrinks until it contains only himself and Ginevra. He is vaguely aware that Harry Potter is there too, looking on helplessly, even if it is Potter's life that is at stake

But the true battle wages between the Dark Lord and his wife.

"What are you doing here, Ginevra?" Tom inquires softly. He wishes to be angry with her, but all he seems to feel is the sharp metallic taste of fear in his mouth. He despises it the foreign emotion, and it sits heavily on his tongue.

She ignores the question, but implores him just as quietly. "Let him go, Tom. Please." She is radiant in her defiance, and Tom takes a moment to admire her beauty in the soft glow of the rising sun. With her, forever is not long enough.

"I will give you everything you ask for. The stars, the moon on a silver platter if you desire. Soon, the Wizarding World will fall prostate at my feet, and everything will be at your disposal. You will have fortunes untold, and fame throughout the ages. So why must you ask for the one thing that I cannot grant you?" Tom hissed angrily. He has given so much, sacrificed so much but the blasted girl just keeps taking. Anger, frustration and hurt roared inside his chest and he fought to keep the hexes from slipping from his lips.

Her gaze does not waver, and unconsciously the hand gripping the dagger tightens a bit more. "I never wanted fame or fortune, Tom. I only want my friends to be safe. Please, let him go." Her voice is tired, and a hint of bitterness seeps in.

"We are at an impasse then. I will not let him live, but I will not let you die. You live and die on my words, Ginevra." Tom snarled. He marches forward towards the witch, driven more by anger than anything else. Logically, he knows, she should be unharmed by a simple dagger. If that wretched house elf had done its job, Ginevra would have taken the tonic specially prepared, granting her immortality. The Dark Lord and His Lady, forever.

Yet at the sight of her threatening to end her life for the sake of Harry Potter made Tom forget all thoughts of logic. He wants to shake her and hurt her, to make her feel the pain that he is going through right now. To scream and yell at her until she finally sees who she is, and more importantly whom she belongs to. In the darkest recesses of his heart, he is afraid, that despite given her eternal life, it is still not enough. His eyes takes on a dangerous glint as he closes the scant distance between him and Ginevra. He watches as her brows furrow in confusion at his arrival, before her eyes narrow in determination. Tom reaches out a hand at the same exact moment that she dragged the dagger against her pale neck.

Ginevra crumples to the ground, but Tom is there to catch her, as he cradles her gently in his arms. Blood is gushing out of the neck wound, and she finds it harder and harder for her to breathe. She gasps, a sharp and shallow intake of air. The cut is deep, and the blood flows freely. It will not be long before she stops breathing completely

Vaguely, Tom registers a long, keening scream as he prepares to apparate them back to the Manor. It took a moment for him to realize that Harry Potter was still standing there. But he cannot deal with that now.

It seems, Tom thought grimly to himself, that Ginevra got what she wanted. For now, Potter's life is safe.

- - -

Suddenly, Harry found himself alone. He is not aware of anything except for the fact that Ginny had just slit her own throat. She had given up her own life to save his. And now she is gone, and he did not even get the chance to say goodbye.

He falls to his knees and screams again, letting out some of the pain and anguish he felt. Nothing matters anymore. Ginny is gone.

- - - -

By the time Ginny opens her eyes again, the sun has set and the crescent moon has taken her place in the dark, velvety sky. It was a clear night, with no stars out, but the moon perseveres and bathes the earth in a soft, ethereal glow.

She is aware of softness and of warmth, and the weight of the blanket that surrounds her like a cocoon makes her feel drowsy and comfortable. In the soft stages between sleep and wakefulness, she opens her eyes leisurely and looks around the room curiously.

She is back at the Manor, and back in her and Tom's bedroom.

Tom…her eyes widened as all the memories of what transpires earlier comes rushing back at her. Harry…Tom…the dagger!

Ginny struggles with the blanket as she tries to sit up, her hands then flew to her neck, half expecting to feel the angry sting of the open gnash on her neck. Her fingers first touched down softly, then impatiently as she tries to feel any evidence of what had happened. But to her amazement, there was nothing but the smooth, even skin of her neck, completely unmarred. She looks down and her hands and expects them to be covered in warm, thick blood, but finds nothing. It is as if she had never slit her throat at all.

"Your wound healed almost immediately, though you did lose consciousness because of the blood loss." A voice – Tom's voice – intrudes her musing, and Ginny tries in vain to stifle her surprise at his presence.

"What happened? Why…am I still alive?" She whispers softly, asking the questions that she felt she already knew the answers to.

"The tonic, Ginevra. Welcome to eternity." Was the only response she got. She can only hear his voice, and make out a shape seated on the loveseat by the door in the darkness. She wishes she could see his face right now. Ginny wracks her brain as she tries to process what he had just divulged. Eternity? The tonic…

…Ginny tilted her head slightly in question. "A tonic? What for?" She inquired, as Tom kissed her cheek and turned towards the door. "Just a supplement, I guess you can call it." Tom answered blithely, his back turned towards her to hide the gleam in his eyes and his twisted smile.

"Eternity? You mean I am…?" Her voice breaks when the realization of what he had done sinks in. A small part of her is not surprised. She knew, always knew, that Tom meant to live forever. Of all the things in the world, Death was his one true enemy. But to actually find a way to live forever… And why her, as well…?

"I have gifted you with immortality, yes." Tom is quick to complete her unfinished thought. He is still hiding in the shadows, and Ginny wishes that he was nearer.

"Gifted, Tom? Gifted?" Ginny snorts, half in frustration and half in disbelief. "I think you meant cursed." She mumbles angrily. How COULD he? Such a decision, and she had no say in it?

A silence, thick and heavy as the night outside fell onto the room. Ginny holds her breath, and somehow knows instinctively, she had crossed the line. "Is that what you think, my wife? Are you repulsed to have to spend eternity with me?"

Her heart aches at the sincerity and the rare vulnerability at the question. She was angry; yes, but angry that he had made the decision for her. Not angry that he wanted to spend eternity with her, nor at the prospect of being together forever. And suddenly Ginny realizes how so very tired she is, so tired of all the fighting and misunderstandings, and the bed calls gently to her. She lies back down into the inviting warmth and her eyelids droops, suddenly weighted down by the earlier conversation. Before she falls back into a peaceful slumber, she murmurs quietly, "No, not repulsed. Never that. Despite it all, I'll love you forever." And she said no more for the remainder of the night as she drifts back into slumber.

He watches quietly, almost reverently as the young witch slips into a deep, peaceful sleep. As her breath evens out, he moves silently to her side, and places a soft kiss on her forehead. He knew that their struggle is not over. "Happily ever afters" only happened in the fairy tales, and he was no Prince Charming, though Ginevra was every inch the Princess. But for now, this truce, this rare moment of peace - will be enough. It has to be enough. "Sleep, I will watch over you always." He whispers into the darkness. He lies down besides Ginevra, and closes his eyes.

Up in the heavens, the moon shines softly on the young couple and bears witness to the tender scene. But the moon keeps its secrets. And the night goes on, marching steadily towards the next dawn.

The End

A/N: And this story is finally done! My apologies for taking so long to finish this. Quite simply, I have lost my interest in this story, and just couldn't bring myself to write. I have decided that I am much better equipped at reading and enjoying stories than actually writing them. It's a bit funny, because I didn't kill off Harry since I was planning on doing a sequel to tidy up some of the other things. But now, that's highly debatable. I might do a rewrite of this story first, but who knows?

In any case, thanks again to everyone who took the time to review. I don't think I can ever express how much that kindness means to me. If you could please review and let me know what you think of this final chapter, I would be forever grateful. Thank you again to everyone who came along with me for this (really long) ride!