Always || Tom Riddle

Leaving

I don't know what woke me first, Amber's cries or the crashing sounds coming from just below the wooden floorboards of my room downstairs. I was curious I had to admit but my first priority was Amber. I quickly threw on denim jeans,a cream lace top with black knee high boots and a light brown fake fur lined coat, leaving my hair as it was and rushing next door to Amber's room where she sat helplessly sat in her cot, tears in her big blue eyes and hair looking like someone had just rubbed a balloon on it.

"Amber ssh!"Scooping her up into my arms I tried but failed to calm her, the only result of my attempts was her wailing into my neck and gripping tightly with her tiny hands onto my coat. My heart temporarily stopped when the door burst open before I realized what was going on I was being practically dragged out of the safe house by Tom who's hand gripped mine tightly, as if he was afraid if he held on any looser he would lose me among the frenzied crowd of death eaters and aurors. Yet again they had found us, the question was how? Did we have traitors among us or were we just that bad at hiding.

Once outside the house we apparated to Malfoy manor which sat in ruins, although the house was still intact it looked as though it had been through a lot. Without a word spoken between us we walked inside the house which surprisingly looked fine.I frowned at Tom who simply gave me a small smile and continued taking long strides towards the dining room.Upon arrival I realized how out of place I looked, everyone else was dressed in fine black robes with silver and gold masks covering their faces. The room was lit by candles and was for a moment peaceful before dread rose within me.

"Bring them in"Tom ordered and shortly after several well known people from the ministry with their hands bound by magical handcuffs walked in a perfectly straight line, their suits no longer looking pristine but as though they had just survived a fire of some sort, all of them were badly burnt with painful looking sores and blood seeping from minor wounds. It was not until the men faced me that I knew exactly what had happened to them, the death eaters had not just found them like this, they had tortured them, presumably to gain information that men this high up in the ministry would have.

"Tonight you will die, for the traitorous act of aiding the Ministry Of Magic in their mission to wipe me and my followers out from the magical world."After Tom had finished speaking a single death eater stepped forward and came to stand before one of the older men, whose face was wrinkled and grey eyes had black lines circling them which only added to his elderly looks. Moments later several more death eaters emerged from the small crowd over the other side of the dining room and too came to stand before the remaining men from the Ministry.

"Any last words?"The man who I had thought to be my husband taunted from beside me, enjoying the looks of fear,anger and silent plea's for mercy that he received from the men. When the men remained silent a tense feeling filled the room.

"Kill them"At that I decided I had seen enough I walked quickly with a now asleep Amber in my arms.I didn't know where I was going but anywhere was better than here. Tom was no man, he was a monster, some kind of killing machine that if he had his way he would take over the magical world, he needed to be stopped regardless of whether I loved him or not.

"Where are you going?"I had manged to reach the grand front door when his voice sounded from behind me.

"Away"Was all I could manage to say without my voice breaking as tears began to brim my eyes while I tried desperately to push them back, if I broke down here I would never leave.

"Where?"Compared to normal Tom's voice was raw, hard and pained.

"I will find somewhere"With that I opened the door and hurried out, afraid that if I so much as hesitated that I would be stopped. I did much to my annoyance stop when I saw that Amber was now awake and not looking at me but her father.

"Will I ever get to see her?" That was a good point but if I kept coming back as she got older it would only make it harder for the both of us to leave each time.

"No"I now loathed the silence that followed and so was glad when Malfoy stepped outside onto the gravel and walked over to us.

"My Lord it has been done, but we need to know what action to take next"Tom nodded shooing the tall blonde away with a nod of his head, his dark eyes not leaving mine.

"You will leave me?" The tears which I had been holding back fell onto my cheeks when I nodded, unable to speak.

"There is nothing here for me or Amber."At that he seemed to return his barricade and his face became unreadable.

"Goodbye then"With his final words spoken he simply turned his back and walked away. Although I desperately wanted to run back into his arms and tell him I loved him there was no chance of that now, I may have stayed had I not had Amber to think about, but with her it made things much more clearer, if I stayed she would be in constant danger and eventually despite my best attempts to protect her, would end up dead and I would not do that to her. It was decided, I was not going to be coming back to Malfoy manor. Not under any choice of mine anyway.