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That which we make for ourselves	By : magentasouth Category: Harry Potter > Slash - Male/Male > Harry/Tom Views: 38078 -:- Recommendations : 2 -:- Currently Reading : 2
Disclaimer: I neither own nor profit from any part of the Harry Potter universe

Chapter List
- 1-That which we make for ourselves
- 2-Ch 2
- 3-Ch 3
- 4-Ch 4
- 5-Ch 5
- 6-Ch 6
- 7-Ch 7
- 8-Ch 8
- 9-Ch 9
- 10-Ch 10
- 11-Ch 11
- 12-Ch 12
- 13-Ch 13
- 14-Ch 14
- 15-Ch 15
- 16-Ch 16
- 17-Ch 17
- 18-Ch 18
- 19-Ch 19
- 20-Ch 20
- 21-Ch 21
- 22-Ch 22
- 23-Ch 23
- 24-Ch 24
- 25-ch 25 - provisional
- 26-Ch 26
- 27-Ch 27
- 25
- 26
- 27
He could feel him.� Caedmon was moving.� Moving quickly in fact.�� He was approaching
from several levels above.� Relative to Tom�s position deep in the
dungeons, the boy was where he estimated the stairs from the ground floor to
lie.� Caedmon was progressing toward the
Slytherin common room.��

He could almost sense the moment when the blonde paused at the door to whisper
the password and quickened his own pace, although he was certain that he was
too far to reach him before he had attained his ultimate destination, which was
no doubt the dorm room where all of his knights bar one were located.� The one missing was Alphard.� He was seemingly still preoccupied with gobstones.�
He felt a
spike of disembodied emotion.� Shock and fear.� Caedmon?�

The boy was not with the beacons from the other knights.� He must be in the common room
Breaking
into a run, Tom remembered just how hostile the atmosphere in there had been
when he had been in there earlier.�

Would any of them dare to directly
challenge his authority by attempting to detain Caedmon while Dumbledore was
summoned?
He�d had
a troubling brush with Clemens Wilkes.�
Wilkes was arrogant enough to do something like that purely in order to
show he was not intimidated.�

Tom fairly flew up the stairs to the first level of the dungeons, sprinting
down the corridor to the Slytherin shield and darting through as soon as the
door began to open.�
What he
found was enough to cause Caedmon�s wand in his hand to spit red sparks
furiously.�

Wilkes had Caedmon pressed up against him on the sofa, with his arm around the
smaller boy�s shoulders.� Caedmon looked
uncomfortable and anxious.� Callista Kent was sitting on his other side and had her
hand on his thigh.� She was employing the
full force of her, admittedly stunning, green
eyes to try to warm Caedmon to remaining.�
Across from them, on the opposite sofa, Belico
Yaxley and Benjamin Travers were sitting.� All four were talking and joking together,
and clearly trying to animate Caedmon to calm down and socialise with them
comfortably.�
Around
them, the common room was full of younger students who hadn�t the sense to
realise exactly what was likely to happen and far fewer older students brave
enough to want to be here to see it when it did.�

The latter had fallen abruptly silent when Tom entered and the former silenced
in response, trying to work out what was happening to cause such a reaction.
With
great satisfaction he activated his knights� marks and felt them all snap to
shocked attention as the sudden awareness of where he wished them to be flooded
their minds.� He felt their hesitation
and smiled wider as Antonin began to move closer to
his position.
Upstairs,
Alphard continued playing gobstones.
He would
have to remind his other self about that later.�
An example would have to be made of Alphard.� His behaviour was intolerable.� The over-privileged child needed to be made
to accept certain inescapable realities about the position he had willingly
placed himself in.�

Service was not optional and could
not be postponed.� When he was called, he
was to appear immediately.�

Tom considered sending a painful reminder through the mark but abandoned the
thought.� Alphard
was foolish enough to draw others attention to the cause of his pain if not
sternly warned against doing so.�
He
stalked closer to the group on the sofas, wanting to curse the sly smirk from
Clemens Wilkes face and knowing that it would be unwise to do so in front of so many witnesses.
�Wilkes.� Kent, Yaxley,
Travers.� He acknowledged with a curt nod.�
�Caedmon.� I have been looking for
you.� Come with me now.�
Caedmon,
with an expression of desperate thankful relief, tried to get up, only to have
Wilkes arm tighten around his shoulders.
�Now,
Riddle.� We were talking.� Caedmon was just
complaining to us that you have been stalking him and locking him away in your
room.� Why, we wondered � but he didn�t seem to want to admit it.�� What have you been doing to him?!� He�s very
nervous.� Look at how nervous he is
around you!�
Caedmon
was shaking his head and tried to get up again.�

�That�s not true!� he started to say but Clemens drowned him out again.
�Does
this have anything to do with your recent break with Elana
Galloway?!� She was very upset.� Apparently you had no time for her anymore.. You�ve been spending a lot of time with poor Caedmon.�

I have to wonder.. if you
might be forcing your own preferences upon a vulnerable war-orphan.�

After all, we all know you lean that
way.. what with the way
pitiful Adorno Prince still cries in his sleep and
calls your name...

and Caedmon is..quite pretty..I suppose.. if
you like that kind of thing.�

His fingers dug into the blonde�s shoulder when Caedmon started to struggle
angrily.
Tom felt
it as his knights filed up the stairs into the common room.�
He
glanced to the side and confirmed that they were taking in the situation and
moving to positions where they might best control the room.� Something odd in Antonin�s
face caught his eye, but he couldn�t have identified just what it was.� The Russian moved off toward the door to the
common room and began casting sticking spells and sealing spells.�
Some of
the more intelligent older students were already heading for the stairs down to
the dorms now.� Their curiosity was not
sufficient to risk being present, and therefore part of the problem.� The
more generous among them caught up some younger students and shoved them toward
the direction of the stairs � the direction of �not being involved and not
knowing anything about what happened�.
The few remaining
ones scattered when Gyphus and Abraxas turned around
and drew their wands, nodding to them to get out.
Tom noted
that while Clemens Wilkes smug smirk hadn�t faded, his little cronies, Kent, Yaxley and Travers were looking vastly more
unsure of their circumstances.
The room
was soon clear of observers and Abraxas flicked up a ward and a silencing spell
around the common room.�
�Unhand
him, Wilkes, if you wish to have continued use of that arm��

Tom�s voice was low and perfectly, icily,
calm.
Wilkes
made no move to comply, although Callista removed her
hand from Caedmon�s thigh discreetly.�
�You
can�t do anything, Riddle� the mouthy boy sneered.�
...To
think that he had considered Wilkes a potential servant.�
�Everyone
knows that you and your little..gang.. are here.�� Dumbledore will be here soon too.�� And it won�t matter what you do now anyway �
the younger students heard everything I said.. it�ll be all over the school within hours.�

no one will ever need
any proof.� They�ve all noticed you with
the new boy.� Suspicion will be enough to
ruin you!�
Tom felt
his temper rise as he acknowledged the truth in the words.
He was
considering whether there might be time enough to obliviate
every student in Slytherin before Dumbledore got here, when Caedmon apparently
had enough of Wilkes hanging all over him.�
He drove his elbow back hard into the other boy�s ribs and then brought
his arm up sharply, his fist driving back into Wilkes face as he jerked forward
reflexively.

The result was a beautiful crack and a spray of blood down the Quidditch captain�s face as his nose broke.
�Get the
fuck off me you piece of shit�� Caedmon snarled and leapt up, darting
away and, to Tom�s great satisfaction, moving to stand slightly behind
him.�
Neither Kent
nor the others tried to help the cursing and spitting Wilkes, who had to episky his own nose.�
Tom sighed inwardly at the regrettable thought that whatever he did to
them, they wouldn�t remember anyway, since he would have to obliviate
them all.
He cursed
them all anyway with entrail twisting curses, enjoying the pleasant sound of
their pained screams before silencing them and turning to his knights.
�Go and
find the students who were present for Wilkes little rant.� I want them obliviated.�
To his pleasure,
no further instruction was needed.� Abraxas,
Gyphus, Roan and Darius headed toward the stairs at
once.�

Abraxas shot him a look before he descended that stated clearly that they would
need to speak about this later.�
Antonin, by the door tensed suddenly.�

�Someone is undoing my spells� he said sharply, his wand flicking rapidly to
renew the charms that were being dismantled.�
Tom
growled in irritation and sent off his own, more complex, spell at the
door.� It was a little known stasis spell
of Eduardo Talin from the sixteenth century.� He doubted Dumbledore would know of it.
The
pressure reduced for the moment, he turned to the four silenced, but still
writhing, students, quickly dispelling the curse upon them.� Callista Kent was
crying, as was Benjamin Travers.��

With rapidity, he cast both a tongue tying hex and a babbling hex upon each of
them before summarily obliviating them and turning to
hurry toward the stairs to the boy�s dorms.�
When he
noticed a second later that Caedmon was not following him he turned, just in
time to see the blonde plant his boot squarely in Wilkes groin.�� The latter gave a choked high pitched wail.

Caedmon turned and the gratification on his face was plain.� It was possibly the loveliest thing he�d ever
seen, Tom realised, floating on a wave of temptation to push the boy up against
a wall the moment they were in safety and have him again before he discovered
that the other Tom Riddle was back.
Caedmon
glowered defensively.

�What?!� You! you jerk!� Give me back
my sodding wand!��
I had to sit there while the git breathed all over me and that blonde
girl pawed me.�� What the hell made you
think it would be ok to take my clothes and wand and leave me there?!� Give me
my bloody wand!!�
Tom
smirked faintly.
�I do not
have time to put you in your place right now and this is hardly the best
location for it.� Come along now.�

Antonin � You had better make yourself scarce.�
The
Russian was looking at him strangely again.�
He narrowed his eyes as if trying to work something out.�

There was no time for this either.
�Tell the
others that I will return and speak with them later� he said, suppressing the
inward grin at the thought of sending his other half and having even more time
alone with their delectable bonded mate.�
�Yes.� I will tell them� Antonin answered, still looking thoughtful.
Tom
realised that he found the expression disquieting and made a note to watch Dolohov more carefully in future.�
�They
were telling me that Dumbledore is looking for us� Caedmon said quietly as he
descended the stairs a step ahead of Tom.�
Tom made
a sound that might have been agreement or merely disinterested
acknowledgement.�� He did not intend to
have this debate with Caedmon
either.� The memories he�d received from
the other version of himself were still settling into his mind and he had the
strong conviction that he was missing pieces that were of relevance.� It didn�t seem to make sense.� Dumbledore was a cad in his time but he had
never been so foolishly aggressive.� He
had never seemed motivated by any will to power either, though.� And yet.. he had apparently, according to Caedmon, been the lover of
the Dark Wizard Grindelwald.
Collaring
Caedmon as he missed the turning onto the fourth year dorm level where the
passage that Tom wished to take was located, he wondered again what exactly his
other half had bartered to Grindelwald.�

Information, certainly � that was obvious from the translation that he had
worked upon with him.�� But his behaviour
was odd at best and ..the way he had been limping when
he returned..

Something was very wrong there.�

He had looked more than physically
damaged.� The expression was one he�d
seen in the mirror.�� He knew well the
expression he himself had used to hide the things that no one could know..

It convinced others.. even Caedmon,
it seemed, but one cannot lie to themselves.�
He strode
down the dungeon corridors quickly, alert for any sound.� No one else came down to this level.� There should be no sounds other than those
made by their passage.�
As he
impatiently waited for slytherin�s door to decide to
allow him access, Caedmon began to harp again on the topic of his wand.
�You do
not require it at present� he informed him curtly just as the door decided to
open.� He stepped through and when the blond
lingered with a disgusted expression on his face, Tom, standing in the
impenetrable darkness within and having had enough, reached out, gripped him
roughly by the shirt and dragged him bodily over the threshold.� Caedmon flew toward him, amusing surprise all
over his face.� Tom caught him
effortlessly and pulled him flush against his own body.�� He felt the subtle queasiness that told him
that the moving platform was descending.

When Caedmon struggled, he knocked his legs out from beneath him and lowered
him to the pitch dark ground, straddling him and hauling his wrists up above
his head.�

The area resisted light bringing spells and vision enhancing spells but it had
no problem with fixation or binding spells.�
�Let me
go!� Damn it!� STOP! Get off me!!��
The brat
that had caused so much trouble was thrashing and fighting beneath him.�

Tom allowed it for a while, and, as it became tedious, he slid his hand up the
boy�s body to rest on his throat.� A very
small amount of pressure was sufficient to cut off his pet�s air supply and
this quickly rendered him more docile.
�If you
have quite finished behaving like a
child..� Tom murmured, leaning down over the Caedmon,
his lips a bare centimetre away from the other boy�s.
�You are
such an asshole� the choked voice rasped in the dark. �..You�re even worse than
Tom�
Tom
narrowed his eyes in the darkness and sent a wandless stinging charm through
his fingertips on the sensitive skin of Caedmon�s throat, feeling the boy
flinch sharply and enjoying his pained yelp.

�Now now.. Do not compound your woe by adding
insolence to disobedience!� I have just
rescued you not only from Wilkes but from Dumbledore also.�� Over a dozen underage Slytherin�s will be obliviated by inexperienced wizards because of you.��
Your foolish wilfulness is risking their minds..� And as they are my future servants, I am justifiably irritated by your
thoughtlessness.

Yes. I removed your clothing.� I
removed your wand.� You were to stay where I left you.� I do not for one minute believe you did not
comprehend that.�

And yet.. somehow.. you decided to venture up
even so.�
�What
else could I do?!� You went
upstairs!� They�ll figure out you�re not
Tom.� I had to-�
�I AM Tom Riddle.� I am myself.� You will stop thinking of me as.. as.. someone
else.� As.. a
thing.. I refuse to tolerate it any longer.�
He
concentrated on Caedmon�s mark, causing it to burn.� There was a hiss in the dark.
�Do you
feel that?!� You wear my mark.�
You are bound to me.�
�Stop it..� it..it burns.� Make it
stop.� Damn it.� I never wanted your mark.� I never wanted to bind myself to you .� Get off me!�
He
increased the pain and held the thrashing boy in place until Caedmon realised
his own powerlessness and, with difficulty, stilled.� A pitiful, resigned whimper echoed in the
wider chamber the platform had descended into.
�Please.. Tom..make it stop� Caedmon
whispered hoarsely.
Satisfied,
he released the mark again, softening the burn to the faintest tingle.�

�Much better.� He praised the blonde in a low voice�� I ask very little of you, Caedmon.� Give me your respect..
your obedience.. your affection.. and
I will protect and care for you.� You enjoyed what we did last night.. did you not?� And this morning?�� He leaned down and brushed his lips against
those of the boy below him, feeling the way Caedmon�s bottom lip trembled in
the unbroken darkness.�

�You like this..
don�t you?�� He
kissed him gently.

Caedmon hesitated only moments before responding, another faint whimper
escaping as he worked at Tom�s mouth above him.
Tom
smiled through the kiss and shifted himself, inching lower against the boy�s
body, enjoying the hard warmth below.� He
could feel Caedmon press his hips up
against him and broke off the kiss to turn his attention to the pretty waif�s
neck, drawing an appreciative moan from the other boy.�

�Do you truly wish me to stop?� he
prompted teasingly.� �or
shall I...continue?�� The word was
punctuated with a gentle grind of his groin against the hardening one below.
�Bastard..� the smaller boy growled. �just
fucking do it.� I�m not going to ask you
for it!�
Tom
wavered only a second on the cusp of stopping, purely to prove a point.� The point was not worth it and could be made
on another occasion.� With his other self
already back in the chamber, it would be best to take this opportunity now,
while it was available.� There would be
an almighty drama soon when they returned and he would be better served if the
boy remembered exactly how good it felt to be with him.� No doubt his other self would attempt to be
possessive toward Caedmon.�

That would not be permitted.

In addition.. sating himself
on the young wizard now would leave him much more patient and able to deal with
the unpleasantness he was likely to discover upon pressing his other self
regarding the events that had occurred with Grindelwald.
Thus
decided he began to unbutton the white shirt that the boy wore.� It was too large for him � no doubt one
belonging to his other self.. to
him in effect.� Caedmon wriggled, testing the strength of the
spell Tom had placed upon his wrists binding them to the floor.� The spell would hold, Tom knew.�� He preoccupied himself with kissing a line
down the warm smooth chest as he parted the shirt with each button.� The darkness was complete and no doubt
rendered their other senses more acute.��
By the time he had reached the top button of Caedmon�s trousers, the boy
was breathing harder and a large insistent weight pressing up against his fly
testified convincingly to his motivation to continue.��

Tom slipped the button and reached for the zip; drawing it down carefully and
freeing the straining cock below.�

He could feel a small wet circle of precum in the
underwear the boy wore, before he slipped his hand within and grasped the silky
rod, drawing a tense �ahh!� from the boy, that was
equal parts relief and need.
�Suck it..� oh..
god.. please Tom.. Suck it.. I..I need you to.. please..� Caedmon�s words were rushed and half
whisper-half whine.� He wound his hips
slightly and tugged at his arms again ineffectually.�
Tom smiled
wider, though he knew that the other boy could not see it.�

�I..enjoy.. your pleading, Caedmon.�
Do not hesitate to ask for things that you desire.�

He ghosted a hot breath up the shaft in his hand, feeling the other boy tense
in response.
�I like
being in your mouth� Caedmon whispered.�
�Feels so good..� and..�
Tom
caught the slight note in the hesitation.�
�and?�
�Nothing..� Caedmon said hurriedly.�
Tom could hear him swallow thickly.��

Slowly he trailed the point of his tongue up the narrow vein on the underside
of the boy�s organ.�� Caedmon whined
again and started in with his �please please�s�
�And?� Tom prompted pointedly.�
�I don�t
remember.. please.. just.. just do it.. please�
He nipped
the side of his shaft lightly in warning.�
The slight yelp became a groan of arousal and he felt the cock in his
hand harden still further.� It seemed to
grow slightly.� He bathed it with his
tongue in reward, feeling it twitch responsively.�
�what were you going to say before you thought better of it?�
he reminded the boy and then, without warning swallowed the entire length of Caedmon�s
cock smoothly, sucking upon it hard and flickering his tongue against the
underside.�

The young wizard wailed his pleasure.�
His hips that wanted to buck up were held in place by Tom�s hands and he
cried out in frustration when Tom pulled away again almost immediately,
allowing his cock to slip out and hang wetly in the cold dungeon air.�
�It
doesn�t matter.� Fuck!� Tom.. don�t stop!� It hurts..� I need.. I need..more..�

When no further attention to his weeping shaft was forthcoming, Caedmon bit out
� I like the thought of Voldemort sucking my
dick.� Thats all.�
Tom
considered this remark from all possible angles and came to the conclusion that
he did not like it.� Caedmon had thought
better of saying it because at core it was intended in a degrading manner.� He saw this act as one in which he exerted
superiority over Tom.. regardless
whether his own hands might be bound.. whether he was
in fact unarmed and helpless... he viewed it as a degradation.��

That was unfortunate.� It meant that,
irrespective how much he might enjoy sucking his little blonde pet, he could not allow it to continue.�� He would not have Caedmon thinking of him..of Lord Voldemort in that way.
�You were
not a Slytherin in your own time, I see� he remarked wryly.�� There was no answer.� He pegged the boy as a Gryffindor or a hufflepuff.�

He cast the divesto upon himself silently.� Caedmon�s pleading and protesting was ignored
as he moved back and peeled his trousers and underwear off the boy
completely.� He had cast the lubrication
charm, pushed the blonde�s legs back against his body and positioned himself at
the hot tight little pucker before the other boy had time to really struggle
against him.� Then he was pressing
himself in against the resistance of the small muscled ring.� The sharp pained cries bounced and echoed
around the vast cavern.� He ignored them
and held Caedmon in place while he forced himself inside.��
When he
was fully seated he stopped moving and carefully released the straining muscled
thighs he�d been holding down, lifting them and wrapping the boy�s legs about
him.
�That was
for your implication that I am sexually subservient to you� he informed Caedmon
softly.� �We shall see if I ever choose
to pleasure you orally again.�

Caedmon made a pitiful little sound that led Tom to suspect that he was
crying.�

�I�m sorry� he choked out wetly �I didn�t mean..� Please don�t hurt me anymore�
A faint
whisper of regret floated through Tom�s mind.�
His little mate sounded so miserable.��

He leaned down over the smaller boy and began to place gentle kisses upon his
face.� He could taste the cold salty
tracks of tears trailing down from the sides of his eyes and licked them away,
feeling incongruently apologetic.� By the
time he had traced Caedmon�s jaw with soft lingering kisses and moved to his
lips, the other boy had seemed to calm somewhat.� After a while he began to kiss back.� Only then did Tom draw back and whisper,
feeling mixed feelings about doing so, that he had not intended to hurt him quite so much.�� Caedmon pleaded to have his arms released
and, in the sentiment of the moment, he acquiesced.�
He had
feared that the boy would begin to fight him immediately, but that did not
occur.� Caedmon wrapped his arms around
Tom�s neck and dragged him down again, capturing his lips more forcefully even
as he tightened the muscles in his arse.��
The combination of pleasure and challenge was unmistakable and he smiled,
nipping at the other boy�s tongue as he began to draw back and ease in again
slowly, the motion hot, tight and greasy with lube.�

They both groaned at the sensation.�� Tom
held himself up on his hands above Caedmon and, experimentally, thrust in
harder.� Rather than a yelp, this drew
only a gasp and the arms and legs about him tightened.

�More..� he thought he caught the boy breathe.� So he did it again, setting up a slow tempo
of hard thrusts, the meaty slaps echoing perversely around the dark
cavern.�� Now Caedmon�s groans were
impossible to miss.

�Fuck.. that�s so good.. so good Tom.. Harder.. �
Becoming
somewhat lost in the delicious sensation himself, it was all he could do to
recognise the words and comply, leaning further forward and changing the angle
as he slammed slowly down into the boy below.�
He felt the legs unwind from about his waist, followed by the arms and,
in the darkness it took him a moment to recognise that Caedmon had pulled his
own legs up against his body and was holding them there.� Every pump drew a soft gaspy cry from him now
and when Tom stopped and circled his hips, seating himself even deeper, the boy
mewled in pleasure.
It did
not take very long at all after that till he was begged to go faster and after
that, it would not have mattered if Caedmon had made any further requests
because Tom was completely absorbed in the tension and ecstasy of his own
body.� The boy beneath him in the dark
had faded away � had become nothing more than a hot wet hole to plug and his
own cock was dictating his movement, demanding harder, faster, now now now.� He was not at all aware of the duet of gasps,
grunts and moans filling the darkness, he was aware only of the approaching
point of his own release, like a bright light in the darkness, and his own race
to reach it.�
The awareness
of Caedmon returned bare moments after he had yelled his euphoric release,
before his movements had even ceased and he was suddenly horribly alert to the
fact that he had completely forgotten the panting boy beneath him.� Had Caedmon climaxed?� Had he been hurt?� fuck.� He lowered himself hesitantly, till their
abdomen�s were pressed together and almost groaned in relief when he felt the
telltale slick wetness over the skin below him.�
Yes.� Caedmon had found his
pleasure.� At least
that.� He shifted, rocking his
softening cock inside the hot wet sheath and leaned even lower, pressing a
chaste kiss to the parted, panting, lips of the
boy.� �Are you hurt?� he asked
tentatively, unsure whether it might not have been better to leave the question
unasked.
�Are you
fucking kidding?� the incredulous breathless response came.� When he did not answer Caedmon responded more
soberly �No.. i�m
not hurt.� I�m..
i�m the opposite of
hurt.� That was..
that was fucking amazing..�
Tom
allowed himself to grin, only because he knew that the other boy could not see
it.� He preened inwardly.� Amazing.� Hopefully it was far more amazing than his
other self had been with Caedmon.�

He drew the boy into a less than chaste kiss, drawing his softening cock out of
his body, but lingering and curling himself into him, reluctant once again to
continue to Slytherin�s chamber.

Finally, he broke the kiss and sighed.�
It could not be avoided.
�My other
self has returned� he murmured softly.
As
expected the result did not please him.� Caedmon
stiffened and tried to pull away. �He�s just gotten back now?� You can feel it?� Let me up!.. we have to.. we�ve got to.. He
can�t know!�
�No.�� Tom disconfirmed disappointedly.� �No.. he returned earlier.�
We spoke in the chamber before we decided that I would go and collect you to bring you back below.�

Caedmon.. He is quite aware that you and I have not
been playing wizarding chess all night.��
I do not want you to behave as though nothing has happened.�
The boy seemed
to panic suddenly. �No!� You don�t
understand.� Let me go!� You�re.. I shouldn�t
have..� I.. I fuck..I
basically married him.. I..this is wrong.. he�ll be-�
�You
married both of us.� I am him.
We have discussed this.� Caedmon.. you are bound to both of us..
�No!� Maybe you can activate the mark and stuff but
you weren�t there. I didn�t bind myself to you. �You aren�t him.� You�re like.. his twin or his brother or something.� It�s wrong to be doing this.� He won�t like it.� I bet he was upset when he-
�He�s
been fucking Grindelwald� Tom bit out venomously and
then cursed himself.� The silence was
thick in the pitch darkness.� Tom held
his breath and seriously considered obliviating the
boy, even with the danger of harming his memory.
�you lie�
Caedmon sounded
very small and afraid.
�He
wouldn�t.. He was so angry at the thought that I might
have kissed someone else�
Tom
closed his eyes and tried to calm himself.�
He could feel his heart beating.�
This was the perfect opportunity to twist the boy�s affections away from
his other self and onto him.. but
he couldn�t quite persuade himself to say the words that would break Caedmon�s
heart.
�I do not
know the circumstances surrounding their interaction� he said softly, the snake
within him screaming at him that this was the opposite of what he should be
saying.

�I..I.. think it is possible that..he
was not an entirely willing participant� he breathed.
The
smaller boy beneath him jolted in shock.�
�are you saying that he..that
he was raped?!� he yelped in a voice
that was tight and far-too-high.
�I..don�t know� he conceded truthfully and swallowed.� The information he would need to reveal in
order to explain his suspicion was something he really wished never to admit to
another living human being.�

But it was dark.� He could not see Caedmon�s
face.�� The boy could not see him.� It
made it slightly easier.
�He... we.. are not unfamiliar with being forced to....� he trailed off.
There was
another silence.�
�I..recognised his expression upon returning...� I..have not spoken
with him about what occurred.� It is
merely my strong suspicion.� Some of the things he had written to me in
the diary have suggested as much..but mainly it hit me
when I saw that damned mask.��

I know that mask..believe me..�
�But you
don�t know for sure!� Caedmon seemed to leap upon this ice floe of hope.� �You could be imagining it.� It�s not true.�� He could have been upset about something
else.� He .. he would have told
me.. if he�d been.. if
he�d..�� And he wouldn�t do it willingly
� he promised..�
Tom bit
his lip

�Believe what you wish then.� He said finally.�
�But do not demand his answers on the matter.� Do not force him to choose between lying to
you directly or admitting what he may not wish to
admit to himself.� Be a Slytherin, if you
are at all capable of it.� Observe his
behaviour.� Listen to what he says and to
what he does not say.� This is a delicate issue.� If he has indeed...submitted.. himself to Grindelwald�s
advances, or perhaps those of another wizard, upon Grindelwald�s
order � he will be quick to anger on the matter.� He will be...ashamed.� It will be easy to vent his anger upon
another target.�

It is probable that in some way, whatever has been done, was done toward what
he believed was your benefit.� As I understand it � he sought Grindelwald out in order to protect you from Dumbledore...�
The boy
below him was very still.

His voice was barely audible when he spoke.�
A mere whimper of a voice - �But.. You
wouldn�t, would you?!� You wouldn�t do..that.. for me?�
Tom
snorted wryly.� It held little amusement.

�As you say.. it was not I who was present for your binding and
marking.. It was not I who first
found you.. who first took
your innocence..�

I daresay that I ..might..be
persuaded to go to quite some lengths to protect you, Caedmon.� You are mine.� You cannot possibly understand what I
mean when I tell you that I can feel
you inside me.�� I would kill before I
would allow you to be taken from me.. I do not know
whether I would tolerate...that...rather
than lose you, but it is possible I suppose � if the circumstances conspired to
offer me few alternatives.

You must not view it as ..infidelity.. Do you
understand?� If anything, it is the
ultimate symbol of his commitment to you.�
To place your welfare above his own...� It is not something that either of us have done before.�
Feeling
that he had said all that could be said on the matter, Tom climbed off the boy,
who was now trembling once again.� He
summoned Caedmon�s clothes in the dark and pushed them into his hands.

�Dress.� We have
taken too long and he has been concerned since returning and finding you
absent.� I should perhaps have taken you
back directly..but I could not stand the thought that
you might grow cold and refuse me upon his return.� After your words to me this morning.. and on the way down here..� I needed to feel you once again.. just in case it should be the
last time.� It was selfish, I am
aware.� I do not regret it.�
Caedmon
did not reply.
He used
the reverse divesto to reclothe
himself and waited while Caedmon silently put himself back together.�

When the boy spoke, it was in a sad little voice� �Could you..scourgify me.�
It�s.. I�m..sticky..�
He did so
immediately, surprised that he had forgotten such a fundamental courtesy.��
The walk through
the black caverns proceeded in silence, Caedmon was
led docilely by the hand along the narrow ledge over the chasm and through the
tunnel until the dim green light allowed their silhouettes to become
visible.�
He could
see Seshastra coiled upon the damp stone outside the
head-chamber.� The door was open.� Obviously his other self was impatient.�
The large
snake shifted as he approached.� There
was something nervous and floundering in its movements.
::Other Massster:: it acknowledged
when he drew closer ::You have found the mate..I am ssss::
::Be silent:: he interrupted it coldly.� ::You disregarded my
command and took Caedmon up the pipes.�
And in the state he was in!�
Others have seen my mate unclothed.. they have dared to lay hand upon him � and the blame rests
at your feet.� You have failed me and I do not wish to
entertain your foolish excuses at present.�
We will speak of this later.::
He
dragged the limp blonde onward and over the stones to the entrance.� Inside, all was still and quiet.� Tom paused hesitantly inside the door, Caedmon
bumping into him.�

�What?� the boy asked in a whisper.� Tom
shook his head slightly. �it�s nothing�
He
continued on more warily, almost creeping.�
The doors were closed all along the hallway.� He had no idea where to look for his other
self.� The library..
the bathroom.. the bedroom?
�TOM?!� Caedmon called out suddenly, making the horcrux-Tom
flinch slightly and glance back over his shoulder in irritation.�
The door
next to the bathroom swung open slowly.��
Tom swallowed, but Caedmon had already pushed past him and rushed to the
door, slipping inside.�

The door closed with a bang.��

Tom swore and tried the handle, knowing before he did that it would be
locked.� It should open for him.. just
as it had locked on his other self�s wishes.. As expected it did not open.� No doubt there were other spells upon
it.� His other self had had enough time
while he himself had been retrieving the boy to consider exactly which spells
he wished to use upon the door.�

Perhaps he should be grateful to Caedmon for entering first.� If the other version of him had desired to
speak with the boy uninterrupted, he may have had spells planned to eject Tom
himself from the room before securing it.�
Resigned
to a long wait, he moved to the opposite wall of the corridor and, after
placing cushioning and warming charms, slid down it to sit on the stone floor.
Harry
crept into the darker room, coughing slightly at the thick steamy rancid
smelling air.� It smelled like a potion
in here.�
Tom�s
voice floated through the thick atmosphere with a quiet warning.

�Be careful.� You are approaching the
edge of a pool of water��
Harry
immediately stopped in place, peering around, trying to make sense of where he
was.� There were strange dots of green
that wavered and it was far far too hot.
�Undress.� Tom instructed lightly.� �You may join me.�
It was
disturbing how similar his Tom was to
the one he had just been walking with, and who was now, he knew, locked
outside.�

If his Tom wanted to curse him for
betraying him, the other Tom would not be leaping to his defence.
�I.. can�t see� he protested.�
�I�ll fall.�
He heard
the softly spoken �divesto�
and then found himself dancing and squirming as his clothing flew, slid and
crawled off his body rapidly, leaving him naked in the hot, steamy, dimly-lit
room.�
�You are
two and a half paces from the edge.� If
you take three paces to your right before moving forward you will find yourself
at the base of some steps leading into the pool.� The air is clearer nearer the floor.�
Processing
all of that and taking the most relevant point, Harry dropped to his hands and
knees and found himself looking across a black expanse of liquid toward Tom,
who was visible only from the neck up, resting his head against a stone wall on
the far side of the pool.� Harry breathed
out, relieved.�
�Come and
join me.� Tom said softly and Harry did not mistake it for a mere
invitation.� He crawled forward on the
smooth stone till he found the edge.�

The water was very hot.�� His feet hurt
when he forced them in.� It felt like his skin was too tight and being split with knives.�� Tom was watching him though and he was
keeping him waiting so he forced his legs in deeper to the calves, biting his
lip against the almost unbearable burning.�
For a moment he entertained the thought that Tom was punishing him.�
When he
eventually managed to submerge himself enough to swim over to Tom, his face
bright red, dizzy with heat,�
he found that the pool was very deep indeed.� It frightened him and he swam even more
frantically to try and reach the other side.�

Tom was smirking faintly when he got there, although his eyes were closed as he
relaxed against the wall.� Harry,
paddling in place could find no floor anywhere to stand upon.�
�You may
sit on my lap� Tom offered generously just as Harry was beginning to think of
asking for the same.� His legs were
tiring and the heat was making him feel woozy.�
He climbed onto Tom without a moment�s hesitation, straddling him and
letting his legs fall down to either side.��

It seemed there was a rock just here that the other boy was seated upon.� Harry found that it sloped away gradually,
offering a surface against which to rest his feet, but which probably wouldn�t
have been sufficient to stand upon.
To his
great surprise, Tom reached out and wrapped his arms around him, pulling him
closer.� The other boy�s skin was warm
and smooth beneath the water and the silky friction was pleasant.� Tom pressed him closer still, until he was
leaning against his chest with his head upon his shoulder.��

Harry felt the boy � who would one day be Lord Voldemort � sigh.�
�Start at
the beginning, Caed� he murmured, the vibration
tangible against Harry�s own chest.�
�What happened after I left?� How
is it that I returned to meet my own Horcrux restored to flesh.� Leave nothing out...I wish to know..everything.�
Grimacing,
Harry struggled to think of how to explain.�
He pressed his face against the warm smooth neck, feeling inexplicably
comforted by Tom�s proximity, even when he knew he should be afraid.�
�I...was
worried about the basilisk..� he began.
When the
door finally opened, Tom was on his feet in half a second, looking for all the world as if he hadn�t been dozing lightly only
seconds earlier.�

He was faced with.. well.. his face.�� The other
version of him was scrutinizing him with narrowed eyes, as if considering
exactly which potions might be made with his organs.�

Caedmon, who appeared at his doppelganger�s shoulder, looked nervous and
guilty.� He avoided meeting Tom�s eyes �
which was more unnerving than the reception he�d received from his other
self.�
�We must
talk.�
It was an
observation rather than an invitation.�
Tom nodded automatically.� Indeed
they must.�
�Caed � if you would be so good as to wait in the bedroom, I
shall be there when we have finished speaking.�
I. As in not we.�
Was the other Tom thinking to eliminate him?

Tom found himself reaching for Caedmon�s wand nervously.� His counterpart�s eyes went to the movement
immediately and matched it.�

Suddenly Caedmon was between them, his pale green eyes pleading.

�Stop!.. Don�t..�
Both Toms
raised a querulous eyebrow at him.� �Move
aside� they demanded in unison before glaring at one another as if each had
done it on purpose to irritate the other.
�No!.. � Caedmon insisted.�
�Look.. There�s no reason to fight.� You�re the same person!� There�s no competition when you�re the same
person!� You�ve both said you�re the same person!�
Don�t-�
�Go to
the bedroom Caed, or I shall stupefy you and levitate
you there myself��
Tom
smirked at his other self, agreeing entirely.�

�This is nothing to do with you Caedmon.�
Do as you are told.� We shall return when we have concluded
our conversation.�
This drew
a slight frown from his double.�� Tom
raised his eyebrows as if to say �Problem?� and gestured with Caedmon�s wand
for his counterpart to precede him to the library.� Neither of them moved for a long minute.� Finally the other Tom made a visible show of
casting strong shields and then stalked off toward the library.�

Tom glanced meaningfully at Caedmon and nodded in the direction of the bedroom
before following his doppelganger into the library and closing the door behind
him.
�Astounding..� was the first thing that the other Tom said, accompanied
by another examining gaze. �My own thoughts had been moving in an entirely
different direction.� Had you considered uniting the diary with
the Heart?�
Tom
smirked. �Not at all.�
Caedmon asked me several questions pertaining to the heart and by the
time I realised his intent, he had closed the diary and was underway.� I would have counselled him against trying
it.� The risks were far greater than he
realised.�
�nevertheless.. it appears that you
have emerged unscathed.� What of the
diary?�
�I am not
certain� Tom replied uneasily.
His
opposite snorted and rolled his eyes. �Oh calm yourself.� I was not thinking to destroy it.� The boy is
correct.� You are...we are one.� Far closer than twins or
brothers.� I will not move to
attack you unless I feel you are threatening me.� Logic would suggest that you view matters
similarly � is this the case?�
Tom
nodded cautiously.� �To a certain degree,
perhaps� he conceded.� �but we are not one..
as you put it.�
Even Caedmon has observed differences.�
I imagine our differing circumstances may contribute to your animosity toward me.� Simply put � I cannot leave Hogwarts while
you, unless I am very much mistaken, have sworn yourself to Grindelwald..both magically.. and physically.
The curse
bounced harmlessly off his shield and struck the ceiling.� Both Toms shifted in shock.� Tom voiced the horror that had flashed
through both of their minds.

�Idiot!� The tomes in here are
irreplaceable!��
�Does Caed know?!� The other Tom sounded frantic.� �Did you tell
him?!� Damn it.� I would.�
Of course you�re enough of a bastard that you�d tell him.� How did he react?!�
�So it�s
true� Tom observed unnecessarily, sighing in discontentment.� He had not wanted to learn that his
suspicions were founded.� It was a
terrible thing to imagine happening to himself.�
�yes.�

The word fell like a lead slab.

�Yes.� I had no choice.� He is..far more
powerful than I..we..
imagined.� It
was among his requirements.��
Tom
watched as his own face cracked and
seemed to crumple in misery.
�I made a
mistake!� he hissed �I shouldn�t have agreed.. I.. I didn�t think..
He promised all I had sought.� The
necklace to preserve Caed�s mind against legilimency,
the information to use against Dumbledore... he even agreed to share his
library.. to teach me..as an
apprentice of sorts..�
Tom
startled at that information.� He knew
how often he�d dreamed of learning at the side of the greatest dark wizard in
the world. He could see how he might have been tempted, had that been offered
to him.
�I had
thought that it was a favourable agreement..� But he marked
me.. He MARKED
me..� and his terms were
more restrictive than I envisaged at that time, blinded as I was by the thought
of receiving what I had imagined I wanted for so long.�� The other version of him hung his head and
seemed suddenly so weak.
�He
despised me at first, you know.� He
called me..a mudblood.. When he learned that I..we
were..Slytherin�s heirs, he was even more appalled that such an ancient line
could be ruined.�

He... He was going to geld me..�
The expression
of revulsion was not to be suppressed.�
Tom choked out, before he could think better of it.� �But he did not..�
Misery
flooded his mirror image�s eyes.�
�No.� No he did not.� He merely extracted an unbreakable oath that
I would never allow offspring to eventuate.�
Tom
turned away, pacing.� It was worse than
he had feared.� Far,
far worse.�

�And the..terms..
that you mentioned � was that one of them or can it
possibly be worse?!�
�It can.�
The other Tom said simply.

�I agreed to give him all information Caed might
possess related to himself, Dumbledore and his future defeat.� I.. I agreed to do
all in my power to prevent his death or internment.. and
to seek to free him should he be incarcerated.��
I.. I was blinded by the prospect of learning
from him.�
Tom could
not reply.� He was gaping in disgust at
the stupidity he had apparently shown.�

�And that is how you phrased it?� All in your power?�
The other
Tom nodded tightly.�
�Then we
are in a rather difficult position, do you not agree?� Since we are bound to extract and use what Caedmon
knows in order to preserve your..�
�-Sexual
slavery�� his
doppelganger muttered, avoiding his eyes.�
�- Indeed.� Tom finished with another grimace of
revulsion.� �And how exactly is that
working out for you, if I might be so bold?�
The other
Tom dragged himself over to the chair and threw himself down in it, putting his
face in his hands.

�I..cannot endure it..� came the muffled response
before he dropped his hands again in despair.

�He is a sadist.� He is entirely
unpredictable and he is magically stronger than I.� The terms of the mark prevent me so much as
defending myself.� Yesterday.. yesterday for several minutes it
appeared he was intending to have me lap urine
from a bowl like a dog.� You cannot
imagine what he is like!!��
Tom truly
couldn�t.� Didn�t want
to.� He felt such self-pity at
present, he could barely contain it.�
�And it
is worse..�
the other version of him went on, to his dismay.

How could it possibly be worse?!
�-I am almost
convinced that he is.. is.. becoming attached to me in some way.� He has intimated that he wishes me to remain
there permanently.� No..
more than
intimated.� He has stated that when I have extracted the information from Caedmon, I
am to kill him immediately and go to our meeting point, where he will collect
me at once.

I do not know how I am to dissolve the oaths made!� I have thought about it at length.� And i�m certain we both know how well pain can concentrate the
mind on these things � nevertheless I have come up with no solution.�
It was
indeed worse.
Tom found
himself sliding down into the other chair and simply staring at himself across the table.
�Fuck.�
He said with feeling.
�Indeed�
his other self agreed with a wry, humourless, grin.
�After a few minutes Tom sighed and muttered
another expletive.�

�Share the memories with me.� he demanded reluctantly.� �if I am to assist
you to locate a loop hole � I must first understand exactly what you have
agreed to and the circumstances that have since eventuated.�
After
another minute of staring, his counterpart agreed equally reluctantly, knowing
that his reasoning was sound.
It was far, FAR worse than Tom imagined.� It was one thing to be told of such things.. but quite enough to have
experienced them.� And thanks to the fact
that the memories came not from another person but from someone whose brain was
wired quite similarly to his own, the memories settled into his head as if they
belonged there.� He did not experience
them as something second hand.
He
excused himself urgently, almost flying into the bathroom and threw up.
It was
when he was panting, hanging over the bowl with clenched eyes that the
doppelganger stepped in after him.

�I felt much the same� he said unnecessarily, casting a scourgify and assisting Tom to his feet.

With a faint smirk, he brushed his fingers through Tom�s hair, setting it into
the gentle wave that they both favoured.
Tom
sighed, offering a faint ghost of a smile back, and stared into his own calm,
unhappy eyes.

�Let us veer from that particular
problem for the moment then.� I require
time to think on what I have learned.�
The other
Tom nodded and turned, leading him back to the library.��
They
spoke of Dumbledore and then of Tom�s knights � who were apparently Death Eaters, solely because Caed had informed the other Tom that they were known as
such in his own time.� The matter of Alphard was dispassionately related and both agreed that,
while the Black heir required a lesson in the realities of his present
position, it would not be politic to engage in such immediately, but rather at
the next �celebration�.�

This in turn only started an argument about who was to attend said celebration
� which then broadened into a general argument regarding who would attend
classes and who was to remain below in the chamber.�
The other
Tom seemed to believe that because Tom had been alone for so very long, and had
missed so much information pertaining to the situation in school at present, it
would be best if he remained
below.�

Tom did not agree.

In his opinion � it was the very fact that he had spent so long without the
advantages his other self had enjoyed that conferred the right to attend
classes while his other self remained below and thought on exactly how
massively he had erred with grindelwald.� Hopefully he would thus come up with a
solution to the problem.
They did
not reach agreement, not even with compromises.�� The other Tom would not agree to an equally
shared arrangement.

And that was how the conversation
turned toward Caedmon.
�Under NO
circumstances are you to touch him!� He
is mine.�
You are freed from the diary.�
You are tangible.� That should be
enough.� I will bring you others to enjoy if you insist that you
require lovers.��
Tom narrowed
his eyes. �You are being unreasonable.�
As you have said � we are the same person.� He is bound to both of us.� I am not your
twin!�
�I will
not share him.�
�You will
share him or you will lose him.� Tom bit out, and then regretted it, when his
mirror image raised his wand immediately with murder in his eyes.

He tried to backtrack.

�That was perhaps inflammatory.��
However...Caedmon already knows that you are ...involved.. with Grindelwald.� Yes.. I was indeed enough of a bastard to mention it.�

I will not submit to watching you..that is, myself..
with him from a distance.� He is mine
as much as he is yours.�

If you insist upon being unreasonable, I will
use the time in which you are busy servicing the wizard you were foolish enough
to enslave yourself to, to poison the boy�s mind against you.� You know quite well how convincing we can be.��

Do you believe that Caedmon will not be difficult,
every single time that you leave at Grindelwald�s
call?� Do you think he will not view it
as a betrayal?� That he will not obsess
over what you are doing together while he waits?��

Even if you were to succeed in destroying me, and I rather think that my
connection with Hogwarts would prevent that � Caedmon would grow to hate you in
time.

On the other hand.. You could be reasonable and agree
to share.. Under which circumstance, I would employ my
considerable persuasive talents to ensure that he views your absence as a
sacrifice � an unwilling act performed in order to preserve his safety.� He will come to view you as a near saint for the pain you are enduring for
him.�

Is that not preferable? Would you not rather his guilt and worship, rather than
his resentment and hate?!�

And all you must do is to cease viewing me as a competitor for his affections
and come to realise that we are the same
person.� I am no more than exactly
who you yourself would be, if you had been alone inside an empty world for a
year.�
Tom
resisted the temptation to draw Caedmon�s wand, even as his own in his
counterpart�s hand did not waver.
After the
longest time, in which he forced himself to breathe slowly and evenly and give
no sign of the inner distress he was feeling at the familiar wand levelled at
him,� the other
Tom finally growled agreement, lowering the wand slightly

�An oath..� he demanded.
Tom
refused.� The wand was raised again.
�This
penchant for making agreements has already gotten us both into serious
difficulty.� If you cannot take your own word, who
then can you trust?! �
They both
snorted simultaneously and then laughed at the fact.�

No.. neither trusted
themselves in the slightest.
�I won�t
be making any agreements even so� Tom clarified.� �however for the
moment I assure you sincerely that I will endeavour to persuade Caedmon that
you are not to be faulted and that we are both
to be respected and desired.� Is that
sufficient?�
It would
have to be.�

Author note.
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That which we make for ourselves