Adult-FanFiction.org : Harry Potter

The First Horcrux	By : magentasouth Category: Harry Potter > Slash - Male/Male > Harry/Tom Views: 27246 -:- Recommendations : 0 -:- Currently Reading : 2
Disclaimer: I neither own nor profit from any part of the Harry Potter universe.

Chapter List
- 14
- 15
- 16
Green.
Shimmering above, a blur that never quite
slipped into focus.
His head throbbed with pain.�
What had happened?!� What was happening? ��The memory hovered just out of reach.� ��
Disorientated, Tom�s eyes slipped closed again and he
clenched them tightly, trying to think back to the last thing he recalled.
�Tom?�
The familiar voice was anxious, worried..
and slightly suspicious.�� Tom placed it, after a moment of confusion.
�Ha..� he started, surprised to
find his face aching.� It felt as if his
mouth were swollen and stuffed with cotton wool.� His voice, he could not help but notice, was
thick and gravelly.� The sensation was
one that he had not felt in many...

...years, he had wanted to say.

But it was decades now since he had last been badly beaten; so very long since
he had been unable to defend himself magically, whether intentionally or accidentally.
�
�Tom??!� Harry�s voice sounded more
concerned now as he emphatically demanded his attention.� It was with grudging resignation that he
forced his eyes open once again and struggled to bring the world into
focus.�

He was lying on the floor.� The chill of flagstones
below him informed that he was naked. �Pain was..� was.. everywhere.� Too many
parts of his body hurt.

And Harry Potter was kneeling beside him;� kneeling over him, wand in hand.� His face was twisted with shock and adrenalin
and pinched in unmistakeable empathy.

The sight of that made the pain worse.�
There was very little he despised more than pity.
�What happened?!� Harry whispered
urgently.
This was indeed the question that was foremost in Tom�s mind
right now too.

When he looked up at the boy with confused questioning and painfully twitched
his eyebrows up in lieu of trying to croak a response, Harry continued
breathlessly.�
�I.. I..waited.
�Er.. when Snape told me to get out
after he barged in with Malfoy.. I didn�t leave.� I waited. �Downstairs.�� I was planning on coming back up after they
buggered off.� But then Snape left and Malfoy
wasn�t with him.. and I tried
to come up and...�� Tom watched the
killing curse eyes flick nervously.� �I.. didn�t want to leave you alone with Malfoy.� But the door was warded.� I couldn�t get in.. I had to wait for Snape to come back.� Then when he did.. I
tried to sneak up with him, but he slammed the door in my face.�

Harry swallowed thickly, seeming to hesitate.�

�Before it closed.. I..I saw you.�

You were.. that is.. you and Malfoy were...�
um.. both of you were..uh..�

Tom watched the pink rise in the other boy�s cheeks before Harry seemed to pull
himself together.
�You were lying on the bed together.� You looked...well.. You looked like you were asleep but..er.. both
of you were..�

He seemed to steel himself and a small glower flickered on his face

�You were naked.� And Malfoy had his arms around you..� He was looking down at you really oddly� �
Harry seemed to scrutinise his response to this, his
expression wavering insecurely between concern and angry betrayal.
It was obvious to Tom that allowing Harry confirmation that
he had voluntarily had intimate relations with Draco would not be at all in his
interests in this moment.� He needed Harry
to tell him what had happened.� Had Harry cursed him into this state?!
With some difficulty, Tom intensified the confusion on his
puffy face as much as he was able, and tried to manufacture a tinge of fear.

It seemed this had the desired effect upon Harry.� He almost looked relieved, although that look
was replaced with one of guilt a moment later.
�It.. it took me too long to
realise the door wasn�t warded.� He hushed, green eyes
lowering and avoiding Tom�s own. ��I�m
sorry!� But I..
When I worked it out and.. ok..
maybe I was a bit shocked at seeing you like that.� I ..didn�t know what
to think� He ducked his head slightly as if ashamed..

�But...when I heard the spells... the...the sounds..and realised
what was happening I came in. �I stopped him!� I�m sorry, Tom!�� I should have reacted faster.� This is my fault!� He...they.. hurt you!� And I let them.� �I should have stayed with you. ��I shouldn�t have just left earlier because Snape said to. �This never would have happened...�

A horrible thought seemed to occur to him and Tom blanched as the verdegris gaze snapped back onto his own and focussed
intently.
�Has anything like this happened before, Tom?��
Tom considered his options for a split second before
strategically widening his eyes and letting them slip away to the side
aversively.� He tensed defensively, his
posture making clear that this was not a topic he was prepared to
entertain.�
He could actually feel
the anguish of the other boy.� It was a
most peculiar realisation. �Almost like
the sensation of legilimency, the feeling was like something amorphous and
alien.� Identifiable
but apart from him somehow.�
�D-does professor Dumbledore know?� Harry whispered.�
There was a tinge of hope in his voice that this was not the case.
Tom shrugged one shoulder as if to say �if he does, he doesn�t
care�.� He knew what was coming next and
it made his innards clench in nervous anticipation.� If he got this wrong...everything could come tumbling down.
�You�ve got to tell
him!� WE�ve got to tell him, Tom!� He�d
never allow-�
Tom�s eyes cracked back to the other boy, widening in terror
as he shook his head emphatically, ignoring the pain.� He did his best to cringe away and forced his
lips into a silent �No!!�
It was sufficient, he saw.�
Harry, unmistakeably torn with indecision at what the �right thing to do�
might be, nevertheless backed away from the possibility of imminently summoning
the old goat.
�But.. you�re
hurt..� he mumbled plaintively.� �I.. I don�t know
how to..�
Tom wasn�t entirely sure of the extent of his injuries.� Tentatively he tried to move and the pain
that had been a dull burning ache lashed through him like a wild creature.� Definitely injured then, he conceded to
himself.� Severus had likely used curses
that had complete countercurses, since he would want
to restore him after relieving his own frustrated anger, however since Harry
did not hear the curses, and he had no idea what had happened to the potions
master, that fact would not much help him.��
If the man was still around here, he doubted very much that Harry would
be capable of legilimising him for the answers.�
�Wand..� he coughed weakly.�
The complete lack of hesitation with which the attractive
boy pressed the wooden shaft into Tom�s weak palm was gratifying.� The thrum of connection evoked when their
skin brushed for that second was excruciating however.� He flinched away, nearly dropping the wand
and ignoring the flustered apologies from the older boy above him.�

He whispered the incantation for a diagnostic spell, realising with frustration
that he was not in a position to see the colour and intensity of glow that
would be emanating from the various injuries over his body.� It couldn�t be helped however, it was one of
the few that could be cast upon oneself and, of the multitude that he had
learned over the solitary years, it was the one he felt most confident in
applying, in light of the fact that he could test none of what he learned from
the medical texts, lacking the ability to cause himself or another injury
whilst inside the diary.�
It was clearly working, however.� He would have known by the soft amber tinge
bathing his head, even if he had not been in a position to see the startled and
curious expression on Harry�s face.� The
way the boy�s eyes travelled over his body, hesitating here and there as his
eyebrows furrowed in concern, brought Tom to an idea.� It seemed the most efficient course of action
at this point.�
�Harry-� he whispered.
The bright, anxious gaze snapped back from where it had been
lingering, full of alert eagerness to be told what to do.� Tom caught it and held it, breathing the word
before the oftentimes difficult wizard could react and stop him.
�legilimens�
It was an entirely different sensation to use the spell on Harry
than it had been to use it upon Draco.�
While Draco had been unwilling, he was skilled in occlumency
and it felt much like fighting his way forward through layers of sticky
morass.� When Draco had not occluded, the
passage had been almost streamlined.. as if he were smoothly guided
along silky strands to the exact memory he had sought.

Harry, on the other hand, clearly did not have great skill or ability in occlumency, yet the sensation that penetration evoked in
Tom�s mind was one of struggling in choppy water.�

The boiling roil of emotion that the boy was producing was sickening.� Anger and terror swirled amidst a vague sense
of betrayal and self recrimination.� He
could feel Harry trying desperately to eject him, but not knowing the first
thing about how to do it.

It was not an unpleasant feeling, Tom thought.�
It made him feel powerful.� Nevertheless,
ignoring the satisfying rush to his ego, he pushed deeper and concentrated,
trying intuitively to soothe the boy�s mind and calm him.� What he needed to access would be on the very
surface of Harry�s mind, inconveniently enough.�
This interference and disorder would not prevent him from delving into
the consolidated memories hidden on deeper levels, but it would effectively
prevent the rather innocuous purpose to which he was bending Legilimency in
this instance.
He whispered into the panicking mind around him �Still, Harry.� Be very still.� I need to see your memory of the diagnostic
spell.� That�s all.� Calm..�� I won�t hurt you..� Just that...�
The boy�s suspicion and hope joined the turbulent mix of
emotions thickening the soup of his mind.�
Tom hissed in irritation.
�Harry.� need help.. stop.. stop!� The spell.� What did
you see?� Hurry..� hurts... don�t have
enough energy to fight you and heal myself too.�
Please..�
It seemed that the matron at the orphanage had been right about
one thing in her sorry muggle existence.�
Please was in fact a magic word.�
The moment he used it, he felt
Harry�s mind struggle to calm itself and the recent memory surfaced around him
as if a key had been turned in a lock.�
He was left kneeling beside Harry, both of them looking down
upon his bruised and bloody body, upon which glowed a disturbingly broadly
arrayed range of light pulses.�

Severus had definitely done a rather thorough number on him, he realised.� He wasn�t entirely certain that he could heal
everything here without assistance from a mediwitch or healer.� His ribs and pelvis were shattered.� His intestines
were knotted and there was something very wrong in his legs.� He didn�t know how to interpret the purple
and orange flickering light around his knees that shaded up into a sickly
yellow on his thighs.� His only thought
was that it could be something alive.� Some creature magically transfigured into his
body.

If he only knew the curses the wretched man had used!�

If Harry had simply waited!� Severus would have healed him seamlessly.

He turned to the boy in question but the glare he had prepared faded slightly
as he watched the way Harry was looking at him; The
way his eyes lingered over the
anatomy below him.��

He realised, peripherally, although he had ignored it thus far, he could detect
faintly a strange warm feeling beneath the fearful concern.� A tinge of guilt too.�

Harry was attracted to him...� or at the
very least he found himself mildly aroused, looking down at Tom like this.
It was an odd time to feel such a thing.� Tom wondered whether the other boy wanted to hurt him.� It was possible, he supposed.� From what he had learned � Harry had more
than enough hate for Lord Voldemort.

Filing the observation away, he returned to the practical matter at hand.� How was he supposed to fix this?!�� He could already feel his strength flagging
and Harry would not be much help if he passed out again.� In all likelihood he would summon Professor Dumbledore
if Tom were not actively begging him not to.
Steeling himself for the exhaustion he knew he would face,
he pulled back from the memory, withdrawing himself from Harry�s mind.
The wave of weakness that struck him rolled his eyes back in
his head.� It was only Harry frantically
yelling and grabbing him that dragged him back to full awareness once again
with an undignified scream of pain.� At
least the boy had sense enough to let go of him again as he struggled
weakly.�

Panting and clenching his eyes against the seeming exponential increase in the
level of agony he was now experiencing at rest, he tried to come up with a plan
that would not result in the exposition of everything he had done thus far and
the probable binding of his wandless magic.�
He could see few options � and none that he felt entirely
comfortable with.�� All relied upon the
will of others.

Had he really any other choice though?�� He
could not heal himself when he could barely move his hand and he would pass
out...quite soon now..
He had Harry.� Harry
wanted to help him.��

How far would Harry go to help him though?
�Snape..� he whispered up at the waiting
boy.� �Make him...� undo... the curses�
Harry�s eyes widened comically as he sat back on his heels.

�You want me to wake him up?!!� No Way!!�
There�s no telling what he�ll do if I wake him up!� How the bloody hell am
I supposed to make Snape do
anything?!� He�ll know it was me then
too!� He�ll tell..�
Tom mused with pain-dulled amusement that his apparent enemy
was seemingly more terrified of a servant than he was of the master.

Of course.. Severus did not behave as a servant
should.� He was undoubtedly Dumbledore�s
man.� That did change things somewhat, to
his thinking.
�Harry..� he murmured thickly,
swallowing at something sour in his throat that he suspected might be
bile.� �can�t...heal
this.. Need you to-� he broke off as the liquid
suddenly choked him and he had to cough.�
The wracking spasms made his chest feel like a bed of bone splinters �
which it in fact was. �He couldn�t breathe and each gasp he tore
threatened to set off another round of coughing.� He could hear Harry swearing and muttering
exhortations to some god to tell him what to do.� He sounded very very afraid.
He realised suddenly that this was quite serious.�� This was in fact more serious than escape
plans.�
�dying..� he choked out, eyes
clenched as he tried to slow his breathing once more.� If he remained calm he would stand a better
chance of minimising the damage to his internal organs and remaining alive long
enough for someone..anyone..
to heal him.
�I.. ok.. How?!� Tell me how to make him take the curses off!�
Tom wanted to say that getting Snape to take the curses off
was not going to be the hard part � Snape would likely panic and act to restore
him the moment he realised what was going on and how close to death Tom was �
the hard part would be preventing him from further action at that point; stopping
him from summoning Dumbledore and/or incapacitating them both.� The hardest
part would be removing the memory from the man who was at this point infinitely
more skilled in occlumency than Tom was in
Legilimency.

Tom wanted to say all of this but it
seemed that his body had decided that enough was enough.� A sudden sweeping chill made his entire frame
shiver and he found himself sinking...losing grip on himself.
Half aware he dimly registered the sound of voices...someone
was having an argument somewhere far away.�
Voices yelling..

The next thing he was aware of with any degree of collected
sentience was a feeling of sharp icy coldness.�
It seemed to converge all around him and then draw into a sharp point
stabbing into the centre of his body,� He writhed, pinioned by it and hearing
distant screams he knew were his own.
�Tom!!�
Harry yelling..� His eyes flicked open in time for a bright
lilac flash to strike him forcefully.� It
felt like it was tearing out his innards.�
He shrieked and struggled.� It was
the realisation that he could
struggle; could kick and strample with his feet that
alerted him to the fact that he was being healed, curse by curse.
�You�re Hurting him!!� Fucking
Bastard!� You said-�
�Continue to distract me, Potter and you shall see what hurting him looks like.� I am healing him.� Which would not be necessary, had you not
taken it upon yourself to leap into the fray yet again and involve yourself in matters that are none of your
concern.� You are an infernal-
�Not necessary?!� You CURSED
him!� What the-�
It was sufficient, Tom decided.� He was quite able to move now.� That would be enough for the moment.� Taking advantage of the distraction that Harry
was unknowingly providing, he stretched a hand out in the direction of his
traitorous servant and silently sent a stunner at him.
Severus dodged it with deceptive flexibility, cursing and
raising his wand to return the favour.�
Internally, Tom accepted that failure was now certain.� He was sufficiently healed to continue his
repair autonomously, but certainly not nearly well enough to engage in a duel
with this wizard.� He suspected that duelling
Severus would be challenging even in perfect condition, with his own wand �
fighting him wandlessly, from a position on his back on the floor, whilst naked
and injured � no.� He would be defeated
any second.
Harry leapt between them, the yellowish spell � a less
pleasant variant of the full body bind � that Snape had fired in Tom�s
direction bounced off Harry�s level two bubble shield.�

Tom felt a momentary pang of..something.. that the boy had retained the information and was now using
it in his defense.�

It was almost immediately drowned in the wave of irritation that the only
spells the boy knew were entirely inadequate to withstand the curses that the
potions master was capable of employing.
And indeed, this was illustrated moments later when Severus
fired an innocuously pale pink spell at Harry that sailed easily through the
boy�s shield as if it were air and laid him out cold on the floor.
Tom swallowed and readied himself for the inevitable
pain.� The black robed wizard whose wand
was trained with steady hand upon Tom�s own prone form was nearly bristling
with rage. �

Surprisingly, instead of cursing him, the beak nosed man stepped closer, his
slow measured movements both graceful and controlled.�

�Albus believes-� he began in a low growl in which the
true dimensions of his anger could be heard �-foolishly � that you are worthy of a second chance.� He believes..that you cannot have been a danger at so young an age,
merely because he never caught you until you were older.�

Severus was now only a couple of metres away and Tom found he suddenly felt
incongruously exposed.� A show of
vulnerability and plea for mercy would not have any effect upon this man however.� There was no point in even trying to play the
role.� He hardened his eyes and let the
emotion slip from his face.� It was a
relief somehow even as he saw the smug sneer twist the ugly man�s face at
having his own impression of Tom confirmed.
�What did you do to Potter?� he demanded in a softly
threatening voice.
Tom remained silent.�
True.. he knew that he
should at least attempt to manufacture some plausible answer to try to persuade
Snape to allow him to continue as he had been � but it seemed a waste of
effort.� The wizard he was dealing with
at present would not be susceptible to charm, to pity, to appeals for
help.� He would not be gullible enough to
believe a lie that flattered his ego � he would likely not believe anything
that passed between Tom�s lips.� The game
was up.� All of his machinations would be
uncovered and reversed.�

Knowing this, there was no point in cooperating any more than was absolutely
necessary.
�Answer me...Riddle..�
It was the derision... the satisfaction.. in
Snapes voice that really burned.� Tom turned his head away, glowering at the
wall impotently.
But was he truly
impotent?�

He could not duel the man and win in his present state, that much was certain �
but that did not mean that there were not other
weapons available to him.. unintentionally
gifted to him in fact, by his other self.

He turned back to the wizard now towering over him with a small sly smirk
twisting one corner of his mouth.� To his
delight the smug superiority on Snape�s face flickered for a moment into
wariness and his hand tensed on his wand.

There was no spell faster than thought however and it required only a thought
to set the two dark marks in the room to frenzied burning.�
Snape gasped and then, joy of joys, glared furiously.� The fury was directed at himself for being foolish enough to forget how his mark had once
before activated in Tom�s presence.
�You!.. I knew it.� he gritted
between clenched teeth, drawing his arm back in preparation to curse him
�I really wouldn�t do that, if I were you..�
Tom informed him quickly.
To his delight, Severus paused.� �I am afraid I have an urgent engagement
elsewhere.� Do try to be economical in
your explanation for why I should
allow you to continue breathing to poison all those around you?�
Tom allowed his smirk to widen slowly and pushed himself up
to sit, without removing his eyes from the man above.� Snape�s wand did not shake in the
slightest.� The man wielded it left handedly � idly Tom wondered whether his dark mark was on
his left or his right arm.
�By all means� he agreed obligingly. �You should stop
because you are going to require my assistance to obliviate
the memory of this little misadventure before you visit my other self.�
He thought Snape might burst a blood vessel in his head from
the way his dark eyes bulged as he snarled.
�You care for Draco,
do you not?� he asked lightly, interceding before the man could vent his spleen
in curse form.�

Snape�s eyes widened still further.� Tom
tilted his head questioningly and began to pick himself up carefully from the
floor.� Astoundingly Snape moved back a
step or two and allowed it.
�Go on.� Pray, do tell
why I might wish to allow a fourth year to destroy a portion of my mind�
It was a thin veneer over the concern the man was evidently
feeling.� Tom took in his ruse in a
glance.� Obviously the marks caused pain
when they were not answered at once.� Draco�s
face had tightened too, even in sleep.�
�Thank you� he nodded appreciatively, smiling back at the
potions master and half turning, pacing slowly and cautiously to the wardrobe,
as he made a silent catalogue of the aches and irregularities still remaining
since he had interrupted the wizard in the process of casting healing charms.

�It seems simple enough to me.� You were
intensely bothered by the thought of Draco coming to harm... it disturbed you
to see him in my bed..and still more to learn that he
is now my counterpart�s...� he hesitated.�
To call Draco a whore would be unnecessarily inflammatory, he
decided.� To call him a consort would
only make the other man doubt everything he said from that point on.� �...current amusement..
shall we say?� he ventured lightly and saw that it was
accepted well enough by Snape for him to go on.�

�I have activated his mark also, you
know.� Your Lord will be expecting both of you to attend upon him
directly.� What do you think might occur
if Draco does not join you when you finally succumb to the pain and go to him?�
Snape shifted slightly.�
It was barely perceptible how his eyes flickered as he considered the
situation.
Tom allowed himself the luxury of turning his back on the
dangerous wizard as he retrieved from the wardrobe underwear and trousers.

�You are perhaps wondering if you might somehow wake Draco, interrogate his
memories and then obliviate them before you apparate to Him?�� He slipped the boxer shorts on without
turning.

�Draco will not wake, however.� Lord Voldemort
is the only one capable of undoing the particular spell upon him.�� Tom glanced over his shoulder to find that Snape�s
wand had slipped down slightly and the man himself seemed perturbed.

�I do not know the countercharm to wake him� he lied smoothly. �Draco only told
me the word to say in Parsel to place him in this state.� No amount of force, coercion or mind control
can therefore persuade me to undo it for you.�
My older self was possessed of some degree of foresight, it seems.�
Snape�s hand dropped fully and he turned away, his eyes
passing over Draco and lingering before shifting then to Harry and hardening
once more.� His wand rose once again and
with a darker, more ruthless voice he clarified �I should have acted the moment
Albus restored you.� Draco�s condition
rests therefore upon my head.� Perhaps
while he is in stasis, a way might be found to repair what you have done.� However, Draco�s life is..unfortunately...
irrelevant.� Snape grimaced before it transformed into a snarl as his eyes
narrowed.� �I
cannot allow you to continue to poison Potter�s mind.� Whatever should occur when I go to the Dark
Lord I will be satisfied in the knowledge that there remains less of his
rotting soul for Potter to destroy.�
Tom�s eyes widened and he took a step backward, realising
suddenly that he had made an error.� It
had not occurred to him that Snape might place anything before his own
survival.� The man was a Slytherin!� He had always seemed disparaging when
speaking of or to Harry.� Draco had
seemed to be of more importance to him.

He should have approached the matter in another manner � should have begun with
a very different rationale.
�Wait!� he tried.� He
could see that it wasn�t going to work this time.� �Please, Listen!�

He wanted to tell him that he hadn�t harmed Harry � that he wouldn�t harm Harry.� He had held the boy�s life within his hand
and had chosen not to kill him.� He hadn�t hurt any of them!� Not Harry, not Draco,
not-
Hermione!
HermioneHermioneHermione!� His heart sang! �His Hermione. �He could feel
her!� She was here.� She was behind him and to the right � in the
bathroom.� Snape had obviously not
noticed her in his fixation.� The door
had not been closed.� Perhaps she was
disillusioned.� No..
he remembered abruptly that he had removed her ability
to perform magic for the time being.� She
could not be disillusioned � she would be unable to cast the charm.� She would be unable to cast any spell.� She could not help him unless..

He focused and restored her magic, hoping she would somehow realise.. and choose to help him.
�Avada Kedavra!-�

�Somnus!�
Tom flinched as a spell hit him and the world seemed to pale
abruptly.� He crumpled to the floor as
everything unravelled.
�Welcome back, Mr Riddle�
At the voice, Tom stirred, struggling groggily into
consciousness from the comforting oblivion in which he had floated
previously.�� Eyes still closed and
crusted from sleep, his mind turned itself to the task of analysing the words
that had roused him.

Who?

After a minor lag the answer presented itself.

Dumbledore.�

An old, weary and disappointed Dumbledore, to be precise.�

He opened his eyes.
The dark grey blocks swimming into focus overhead did not in
any way resemble the ceiling in the head boy and girls quarters.
Turning his head he found a wall of dark grey blocks and one
elderly wizard resting on a straight backed chair and gazing down at him in an
ominously regretful fashion.
�Where are we� he started to say but his throat was dry and
sore and the sound emitted was a bare rasp.�
Dumbledore, surprisingly enough, moved to retrieve a tall
glass of water and offered it to him.�

He was not bound!� Astounded and wrong
footed, he shuffled himself up onto his elbows and accepted the drink with a
grateful expression.
It was cool and refreshing.�
It wasn�t until he was halfway through that the possibility of potions
occurred to him like a cork bobbing up to the surface of water.�
�A targeted befuddlement charm.� I am sorry Tom, but I rather suspected that
you would not willingly drink.�
He narrowed his eyes at the hated former teacher.� �What did you do?!� What was in the water?!�
Dumbledore smiled wanly. ��A potion that was created
after your time.� It will not harm
you, don�t despair.� Although I did not
want to resort to this, I must unhappily acknowledge that Severus may have been.. right..in
his immediate response when I told him of you.��
More reasonable and balanced than I myself, at least.�

The old wizard sighed.

�It is my own fault of course.� I have always
found it such a tragic waste, that one so intelligent..
so gifted..would throw everything aside to such a vicious, repulsive
and, above all pointless end.� I have given you so many chances to change your path over the years.� In every instance I have been
disappointed.� As I am
now.�
Tom blinked, a tiny queasy uncertain feeling squirming in
the pit of his stomach.�

It made him feel unsure of himself.�
Everything he had done had been right, hadn�t it?� He had thought every step out as he went �
each was rational and justified.� The
fact that he had been caught seemed to suggest that he had miscalculated
somewhere along the way, but that did not invalidate the logic of every
previous step.�
�I�m sorry� he lied easily.
Dumbledore only looked more disappointed.

�I wish that were true, Tom.� More than
you know, I wish you were capable of
regretting your actions toward others.�
What spells have you used upon Harry Potter?�
He wanted to say �none� but found himself listing spells,
unable to stop once he�d started.�
Reddening, he realised the purpose of the potion he had been tricked
into consuming.

When he had finished, Dumbledore looked mildly confused.

�Is that all?� You have not used magic
upon Harry in any other way?�
�Yes. No.� he confirmed at once before he could bite down on
his answer.
�How have you gained Harry�s loyalty then?� Why is he so adamantly defending you?�
Tom flushed in unwilling pleasure.� Harry was still trying to save him then?� But that
he did not want to talk about with
the old goat.� His mouth already opening,
he did the only thing he could think of.�
He answered the question in Parseltongue.

�I seduced him and I taught him some
basic defense spells.�
I don�t know.�
The soft sibilant hisses faded away, leaving him facing
Professor Dumbledore�s expression of mild consternation.� He would present that face whenever Tom had
answered a question in class in a way that, while technically completely
correct, was not entirely ethical.
�Could you please repeat that in english,
Tom� the old man tried.�

It was a nice try, Tom thought, beginning to get a feel for the limitations on
this particular potion.
�Yes, I could, but I don�t want to.� He answered succinctly.
�What is the english translation
of the last answers you gave in Parseltongue?� was the immediate and pointed
response.
Tom gritted his teeth but found himself
answering the question even so.
Dumbledore frowned at his answer and leaned back in the
chair, allowing his eyes to slide to the wall in thought.� When they drifted back, there was a tentative
hope and a gentle curiosity in them, as if he were conducting experiments and
awaiting the results of the next one.
�What are your feelings toward Harry, Tom?� he asked
quietly.
Tom bit down on his own tongue hard and covered his mouth with both hands.� Wide eyed, he shook his
head at the old bastard.
�Take your time� Dumbledore offered generously, a repugnant
little twinkle in his eye.� �I expect it
is a difficult topic for you.�
He held out as long as he could, while the feeling got worse
and worse and the words seemed to want to burst out of
him like steam escaping a boiling kettle.�
Finally he couldn�t hold on any longer.
�Lust!� Fascination! �Disdain! �Curiosity.. affection.. excitement.. suspicion.. infuriation.. pride.. possessiveness..� protectiveness.. ...�� He clamped his mouth shut desperately, trying
to hold in the last word that wanted to escape.�
Dumbledore watched him amiably, a disconcerting smile on his face.�

�Fear!� he spat angrily.
Bushy grey eyebrows rose slightly.� �Are you afraid of, or afraid for Harry?�
Tom narrowed his eyes and looked away.� �Both� he muttered in disgust at
himself.� �I am going to kill you one
day, you old goat.� I am going to watch
you scream and writhe and die!�
Dumbledore chuckled. �Yes.. perhaps, Tom.� But I
have heard you promise it so many times in the past that I am beginning to view
it almost as a form of affection.�� Have
you learned of a prophesy regarding yourself and Harry?�
�yes.�
Dumbledore brightened still further, looking surprised.� �Yes?�
And what do you know of this prophesy?�
Tom told him.
Author note.
In case anyone has been wondering..
the version of Tom I tend to imagine when I think of
him in this story can be found here:

http://images2.fanpop.com/images/photos/7600000/Tom-Riddle-in-HBP-Harry-Potter-7670439-500-667.jpg
Review replies can be found at
http://www2.adult-fanfiction.org/forum/index.php/topic/18725-review-replies/
- 14
- 15
- 16
You need to be logged in to leave a review for this story.You need to be logged in to leave a review for this story.
Report Story

The First Horcrux