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Chapter Text

Tom was sitting in the Great Hall, ignoring the snide remarks of the students sitting at the Slytherin table. 'Yes, I understand how much you wish I died somewhere in the Muggle world, eaten by some barbaric muggles,' he thought, 'no need to repeat yourself five times Malfoy! I was the top of the year for the last 5 years, not you! I understand English! Thank you very much!'

Tom was waiting for the first years to come fast and for everyone to finish this feast so that he could go back to his dorm and read the new books he got from Knocturn the day he went to buy his books.

'Atlast! Here they come!' He watched impassively as the students got sorted and dutifully ignored the not-so-subtle suspicious looks from Dumbledore. 'Honestly, did the man think he was just going to kill everyone in the middle of the Great Hall?! He was not that dumb!'

He gave an uninterested glance at the Teacher's Table and did a double take. He pinched himself to make sure he wasn't dreaming. He was sitting at the near end of the table and waa watching the students with an amused gaze
'Oh my!', he thought.

It seemed that it was the exact moment every other student noticed him. Whispers and loud gasps were heard everywhere. Many fingers were pointed at the person sitting at the Teacher's Table. Many starry-eyed glances were shot at him.

The him being Hadrian Peverell.

Now here's the thing about Hadrian-
He's famous.
Rich.
Handsome.
Powerful.

These four attributes about him made him very desirable. For many people. Mostly to the younger witches and wizards because he was young.

Tom couldn't believe that Hadrian was here at Hogwarts. And that probably going to teach them a subject this year!
He prided himself from being different from everyone, but even he couldn't deny feeling somewhat attracted to (intrigued by) Hadrian.

No, Tom wasn't attracted by his money or fame, but by his personality. The man was interesting. The way he walked and talked. The way he held himself. It was captivating.

Tom had first heard about Hadrian in his 2nd year. He was reading the newspaper when he noticed the name. Hadrian Peverell. He knew immediately that the name was important, but couldn't explain it why.
The article was about how Hadrian was the youngest ever Lord of a House. At first it was criticizing him, questioning him whether he was competent enough to take the mantle of a Lord. They called him an attention-seeking inexperienced young man.
The next day the articles changed. It went on praising him. His academic achievements were mentioned. (The writer of the first article was fired. It was in the news too.)
Tom remembered how there was an article in the Witches Weekly which was about nearly 5 pages mentioning just how good-looking Hadrian was. (It was correct though.)

Hadrian had caught Tom's interest then. He read everything which mentioned him. He couldn't explain it. Something in him always compelled him to know everything about Hadrian.

He was surprised to know just how famous Hadrian was. The son of the vanquisher of Dark Lord Grindelwald. Brought up in the Muggle world. Top student of Ilvermorny. The most intelligent wizard. The youngest wizard to become a Lord. The best dueler of the United States. Had gained 5 masteries. And just 20.

Tom was looking forward to this year. 'It will be a very interesting year.'

Chapter Text

Finally!' Tom thought as the last student was sorted.

Headmaster Dippet stood up and waited for the chatter of the students to die. "Welcome students to a new year at Hogwarts and your first year.", he said smiling at the awestruck first years.
He then went on with his yearly welcome speech and then the rules and regulations of the school.

"Finally, I would like to inform you all that Professor Merrythought has retired from her Defense Against the Dark Arts position. But with great joy I would like to introduce Professor Hadrian Peverell as your new Defense Against the Dark Arts Professor."
Loud thunderous clappings were heard in the Great Hall along with whistles and yells of awe and wonder.
The students of Hogwarts were starting at their new Professor in amazement. Tom could understand them. It was The Hadrian Peverell.

The man in question was the embodiment of beauty. Tall, with elegant black hair, dark blue eyes, chiseled face and a mischievous smile. Yes, the man was handsome.

Following Dippet's introduction Hadrian stood up and gave a bow along with a charming and mischievous smile which had many people swooning.

The feast then went on with the students chattering excitedly about their upcoming DADA class. Dippet then called the feast to an end, permitting the students to go to their dormitories.

'Joy.', thought Tom.

As soon as he reached the Slytherin common rooms he went directly inside his room, without waiting for the yearly introductions for the first years. He would have, if he was a pureblood, or if he was in a different house or maybe if the world wasn't so prejudiced. But alas! That wasn't the case. It wasn't like Tom hadn't tried. During his 5th year, his first year as a prefect, he had tried to get involved in the house matters, but was mocked at.

_________________________________________
______________Flashback________________

Tom was walking towards the Common Rooms along with the rest of the Slytherins, if maybe a bit behind them.
This was his chance. A chance to get accepted within the House. He had worked hard for 4 years now, to make a name for himself, to be more than just The Mudblood of Slytherin.

As he entered the common, and started to make his way towards the first years to introduce himself, a mocking voice stopped him dead in his tracks .

"Oh Merlin, look dear Melinda , it seems that the Mudblood thinks that now he has a shiny batch, he will be a proper Slytherin". The words were said by Abraxas Malfoy, who sat at the place which belonged to  the Slytherin Prince. (Tom at this point  knew  that his life will be hell from now.  Atleast the previous Princes ignored his existence. But he knew Malfoy will  not .)
It was followed by cruel and mocking laughs of  his gang (bunch  of  idiots).

Surrounding Malfoy, the members of his gang (now court) were sitting-

Melinda Parkinson- a nasty girl with an obsessive need to gossip.

Druella Rosier- Tom knows that the girl is infatuated with him, but still follows Parkinson like a puppy. She honestly gives him creeps.

Vincent  Crabbe- idiot number one

Gregory Goyle- idiot number two

Alphard Black- now he doesn't actually bullies him, but doesn't help him either. Tom doesn't like him at all.

Tom hates them all. They've made  his life hell for the last 5 years. And now had taken his chance of finally being accepted within the house away. He hates them.

_________________________________________
___________End  of  Flashback____________

Chapter Text

Tom had gone back to his dormitories immediately after that, not wanting to listen to anymore of their stupid comments. He went back to be alone again. Like he did before. Like today. Like he will do next year too.

As much as he hated to admit it, Tom wanted to be accepted. To come back home (Hogwarts is his home) to smiling faces. To be wanted. To be cherished. But that wasn't the case.
Here, he stood in front of the mirror, examining himself. He was thin. Dangerously so. There is always a scarcity food at the orphanage. On the top of that being the most hated person there has its flaws. Less food for him.

'Why do I look like this?', he thought.

That thought sent him back to his previous muse- Hadrian Peverell.

The man was a mystery.

Most people knew about him only as a pretty face and rich state. But Tom had done a in-depth research about him. And what he found was astonishing. 

He found nothing.

That's what astounded him. Such a famous person with zero background story.  There wasn't even a mention about where exactly Hadrian grew up and with whom in a single article. The fact that the man was an orphan surprised people. Many even didn't know that. It was like they forget about his parents death. Nobody knew about his political afflictions. He had mixed views on politics.

On one hand, he had zero prejudices against Muggleborns, many stated that he taught them about wizarding culture. Cared for them.
And then on the other hand, he hated Muggles (it was a lesser known fact. Tom only knew about this because he had once heard Malfoy bragging about it to his gang, one of his relatives worked closely with Hadrian).

So yes, the man confused him.

And now, he was here of all places. He could've got a job anywhere. Literally. But no, he's here now, teaching a bunch of kids DADA.

Tom knew that the man had an ulterior motive behind this. No politician will do anything significant without a gain. What was it? Now that's something he wanted to know. Plus on the brighter side, he gets to see the man (his crush) more.

'Stop it Tom! The man a literal celebrity! Why will he want you of all people in the world to be his partner? Plus you don't even know whether he likes men or not!'
That thought made his morose once again.

'Huh, I should go back to reading the book I bought. And STOP thinking about PROFESSOR Peverell! Yes, he is my professor, thoughts like this will surely take away my Prefect batch.' And that, was something he did not wanted at all.

With that last thought, he once again went back to his book - 'Magick Moste Evile'.

That night, he dreamt of dark blue and green eyes.

My Lord,
           The job is  done . No clues left behind.  Kept  the message there. Got  the treasure. The Knights and Reapers got the call. Will be ready for the it.

~ K

The Dark Lord laughed. It was a joyful laugh.

Finally, after 5 years of planning he got what he wanted. He will have all of them now. He could almost taste the victory now. With the objects now with him, he knows nothing will touch him. Finally, the world will change. He will be great.

'Finally, I'll have all the three Hallows. Death will be a very helpful ally. All these years, the wizarding population was wasting itself.  But not now, now the things will change. And he will be the one to start it. And those who've wronged me will pay dearly', he thought gleefully, a sinister smile growing on his face. His eyes alight. Cruel, poisonous green eyes  looked at the letter from his Knight. The Merge will happen soon. And then, his dreams will become reality.

Chapter Text

Next morning, Tom went down to the Great Hall for breakfast, with mind full of thoughts (about Peverell), knowing full well that they are not going to end until he solves the mystery.

He went and sat at his usual seat at the end of the Slytherin table, eating a small amount of food (damn the orphanage!). The Great Hall was full with the chattering of the students, the lazy ones completing their summer holiday homework (seriously!?!?). The atmosphere was that of joy. Even Tom couldn't stop feeling content. 'Finally, I'm home.'

The owls bringing the posts had arrived. It was a beautiful sight. Suddenly, the peaceful atmosphere was disturbed. There was a loud gasp from somewhere. It started like a chain reaction. There were gasps of horror and yells from everywhere in the Great Hall.

Tom, who hadn't started reading the newspaper, opened it to see what's the deal. 'Oh Merlin', he thought. He understood their actions.

Murder at the DOM in MACUSA

A horrific incident had occurred in the Department of Mysteries at MACUSA. Two members of the House of the Selwyns- Lord Lucas Selwyn and his wife Lady Caroline Selwyn were murdered last night at the DOM.

Their bodies were found at 7 a.m. by one of the Unspeakables. He had called the aurors immediately after coming across them. The President of MACUSA was also present when the questioning began. No clues were found at the crime scene. Aurors had done an extensive search- even a magical signature test- but no results were found. The working members of MACUSA are scared to even enter the ministry, fearing they could be the next target.

The  research  project  of the Selwyns seems to be the reason  behind   their  murder - official statements  haven't   been  passed yet. This project  was  the top secret in the department.  Even  with the  help  of  the  Unspeakables, the  aurors  had  to   spend  3  hours  to disable the wards  around  the workspace of the Selwyns.
What they found confused  and  scared the  rest of  the Department.

This secret project was a study on the former Dark Lord Grindelwald's  wand .

Grindelwald's  wand  was lost after his defeat by  the   hands  of the late Lord James Peverell.  Many  people suspected that the Death Eaters were the  ones  who stole the  wand  to honor the Dark Lord.
It seems that the  rumors  were  false . The Selwyns had no affliction with the Dark Lord. The aurors are working finding on the reasons for Grindelwald's wand  being  in the DOM  and  the  reason  for their murder.

Though a very unusual message was  found  at the place where the  wand  was stored. The message read  as : "It will happen soon . Our Lord will rise.  Even  Death will not stop us."
This message frightened majority of the  workers .

What is  the  message  speaking  about?  What do they mean by 'it will happen soon'? Which Lord? Is it Lord Grindelwald once again   or  someone new? Who are we facing? Why  won't  death stop them?
These are the questions  running  in everyone's  mind  after  reading  the  message .

We, at the Daily Prophet, hope that the aurors will reach  the  bottom of this case  and   would come up with answers regarding this  frightening message.

~Natasha Evans

Chaos.

That was what followed after the papers were read by everyone. Many theories were spread around in a matter of seconds.

Dippet stood up and yelled (he used a silencio on himself), " Silence !!" .

A tense silence followed.

Everyone was waiting with bated breath to hear what the Headmaster of Hogwarts will say.

Tom noticed that Dumbledore looked suspiciously pale behind Dippet. 'Curious'

Chapter Text

The Dark Lord sat on his throne. In front of him was his army. The Knights, his Inner Circle, the most trusted ones, were standing in front. Behind him were his Reapers. His army.

They were all waiting for him to do it. The thing they waited 5 years for.

To unite the Hallows.

In front of him, the three objects were laid on a small table.

A cloak. The Invisibility Cloak.

A stone. The Resurrection Stone.

A wand. The Elder Wand.

He could feel it in his blood. The Hallows were calling him. To master them. And he will.

_________________________________________
______________Flashbacks_______________

Harry, now Hadrian, entered the Peverell Manor. On his 11th birthday he had received the invitation to join Ilvermony. It was there he got to know about the legend of the Deathly Hallows.

'And I don't have go back to the stupid orphanage ever again', he thought satisfied. When the Potions Professor Nicholas Scott (who was the one to introduce him to the world of Magic) got to know about his living conditions, he had immediately contacted the Department of Care of Magical Children, and after several questions, swearing, yelling and memory charms, Harry was promised that he will never be returning to the orphanage again.

It was the best day of his life.

Here's one lesser-known fact about him, he wasn't always Hadrian Peverell.

Before his 11th birthday he was  known as Harry Potter. It was the name given to him by the matron of the orphanage. When he was dropped there, in a  blanket and basket, the blanket had the initials HJP. No name was given. Thus, he was named as Harry Jacob Potter.

When he had done his Inheritance Test, the results had shocked everyone in the room in Gringotts (A  goblin, the Headmistress of Ilvermony, the Head of DCMC and of course, Harry).

=================================
Inheritance Test  Results
Gringotts,  Sapphire Valley, NYC

Name : Hadrian James Peverell

Age : 11

Blood- Status  : Half-blood

Mother :  Lily Rose Peverell (neé Evans) (dead)

Father : James Fleamont Peverell (dead)

Possible Guardians :

Sirius Orion Black (Godfather) (imprisoned)

Remus John Lupin (In the Wills of JFP and LRP)

Alice Maria Longbottom (Godmother) (Janus Thickney Ward, St. Mungo's Hospital, London)

Frank C. J. Longbottom (by marriage) (Janus Thickney Ward, St. Mungo's Hospital, London)

Severus  Tobias Snape (by Wills of JFP and LRP)

Headmaster/ Headmistress of their Magical School (by the law of the ICW)

Petunia Rose Dursley (neé Evans) (Muggle) (by relation)

God-brother :  Neville Frank Longbottom

Cousin : Dudley Vernon Dursley (Muggle)

Heirships and Lordships:

Ancient and Noble House of Peverell (Lordship - Age 15)

Ancient and Noble House of Gryffindor
( Lordship - Age 17)

Noble House of Noir
(Heirship)  (Current Lord- Sirius Black)

================================

" Now this is really, really surprising", said the Goblin, "and equally horrifying ."

"Why?", asked Harry.

Everyone in the room looked at him in wonder and pity.

This boy, who was abused by Muggles, who was robbed of a childhood and was abandoned by someone the wizarding world trusted, was none other than Hadrian Peverell.

Hadrian was the son of the infamous James Peverell, the vanquisher of the Dark Lord Grindelwald. Many  witches and wizards owe their lives to him. He was their hero. And the wizarding world had failed his son.

Slowly, Headmistress Rodriguez and the Head of DCMC, Olivia Anderson, explained to Hadrian about his parents.

During the  whole explanation, Harry remained quiet.

At the end of it, he asked, "Why was I not placed with anyone on the list, why here, in an American orphanage, thousands of miles away from London? "

Though there were many more questions running in his mind, he kept quiet. Asking too many questions at once was never good. He'd learned it the hard way.

"The attack which killed your parents was arranged by the Death Eaters. By the time the aurors had  reached Godric's Hallow, James and Lily were murdered . They were able to save you. After that you were sent to St. Mungo's to heal the bruises you'd got during the attack. After that it was Albus Dumbledore who'd taken you away from the  hospital. He claimed that he was going to take you to your relatives. Even if there were any objections, no one could do anything. Dumbledore had a lot of influence back then in London. On the top of that, the Peverells were really close with Dumbledore. Everyone was assured that  you were happy. The war had officially ended . I'm ashamed to say that in midst of the celebrations, people easily believed Dumbledore. No one ever questioned your placement. But now we know that it was a big mistake. I'm really sorry, Hadrian.", Headmistress Rodriguez said sadly. There was genuine guilt on her face.

Harry, for the  first  time in years, felt regret. He  could've  had a family, a normal life. But it was all destroyed  because of some old men. One was dead, but the other was still alive. Good, he'll have his revenge.'

I'll   destroy   that  man', Harry promised himself that day.

"I understand madam, though  I  ask you of one thing, will you promise me to do that? Just  one   thing .", Harry asked.

"Anything.", Olivia replied.

Headmistress Rodriguez nodded .

The goblin said, "Whatever happens in Gringotts stays in Gringotts".

Harry, looking satisfied, said, "Will you keep my life as Harry Potter a secret? Not even a  single  soul should know what happened to me. The people in the orphanage, their memories were erased, Professor Scott said so. I don't want people to know what happened to me. Will you promise me that?"

The three other occupants looked at each other. Slowly, Olivia nodded and said, "We'll take an Unbreakable Vow".

Chapter Text

Draco Malfoy, the heir to the House of Malfoy, stood along with the rest of the Knights. There were twelve of them in total. They were all waiting for their Master to unite the Hallows. Standing there, he almost couldn't believe that he was a part of this great revolution.

He could see his life playing in front of his eyes at that moment.

The moment before greatness.

His life before he met Harry was like every other pureblood heir. Be faithful to your family, don't betray your blood, dislike Mudbloods, look for a nice pureblood spouse and Don't associate with Mudbloods.
Once he believed in all those rules. He believed in Pureblood supremacy. He believed that Malfoys were the best.

But he knew better now.

Before meeting Harry, he believed in every rumor about Hadrian Peverell.
He thought of him as a Dumbledore-loving person. The Golden Boy of Gryffindor. Muggle-loving. Naive. Easily manipulated. Arrogant. And most importantly a light wizard.

Oh, how wrong he was.

Before James Peverell, the Peverells were known to be a neutral family. Then James went to Hogwarts and immediately his affliction changed. He became Light. (Though there were rumors that he did use Dark Magic sometimes. Rarely. But he did.)

And when James declared his alliance with Dumbledore, against Grindelwald, Peverells were declared as a light family.

With his heroic end, everyone assumed Harry as a light wizard.

He met Harry when they both were 18. In a Ministry Ball in the United States.

_________________________________________
______________Flashback_______________

Draco was looking around in the Ball with a bored gaze. He was required to attend this Ball as he was of age now and had to find a person to get into a marriage contract with.

He didn't like this at all. All the polite words and masks. It wasn't his forte. He had always been a quiet child. Be quiet, don't complain, smile politely and there you have the gained trust of the others.

That made him very different from his brother, Abraxas.

Abraxas was the second child of the family. That meant only four things. Not many duties. Can be ungrateful. Is spoiled rotten. And no experience of the real world.

Yes, Draco believed in the pureblood supremacy. Mostly he did. But there were times where he did questioned his beliefs. Only a few times. But he didn't tell a soul about it. Knowing his father, he will definitely be killed if the current Lord Malfoy ever got the wind of him questioning their beliefs. Questioning Lucius. So, Draco kept it all to himself .

A commotion somewhere  near the entrance got his attention and the reason for it made him sneer. Hadrian Peverell, the Golden Boy who wasn't capable of doing any evil.

The boy made him jealous. He  wouldn't admit it out  loud even if his life depended on it. Peverell had a really easy life. No parents to live up to their expectations. Was a Lord (of all things) to TWO ancient houses. Could behave the way he wanted. A Prince in a sense. Draco hated the boy.

Sneering, he went outside the hall, to be away from the Great Peverell and his rabid fans.

Hours passed as he waited outside. He was thankful  that  his father  didn't attend this ball, or he might have literally pulled him inside by his ears, for wasting his valuable time outside looking at the stars instead of some pretty pureblood.

"Hmm.... I didn't think that you'll spend two hours outside the ballroom, and not inside, looking for someone to insult." Said someone behind him. Someone familiar.

Or so he  thought .

But no, it was Peverell. 'Well, he is not unfamiliar either', Draco thought.

"And why", he said with his usual, well-practised, haughty voice, "did the Golden Boy run away from his dear fans ? Scared, Peverell?"

For a moment, Draco thought that he had seen a  flash of green in the boy's dark blue eyes. It sent a shiver down his spine. He discreetly looked around. 'Damn, I remember there were atleast seven people here before.'

Peverell chuckled softly. And damn, wasn't that a melodious sound. 'Get a grip', he commanded himself. 'There was nothing melodious about Peverell.'

"You amuse me, Heir Malfoy, a pureblood, on the top of that a Malfoy, and yet you still question your own beliefs." Peverell said.

Draco froze. He couldn't breathe. Nobody knew that. Not a single soul. Then how did Peverell know?

He opened him mouth to say something. He  didn't  know what. Just something to shut Peverell up and forget this ever happened. (Though he doubted it).

Peverell beat him to it.
"Don't deny it. I know you, Heir Malfoy. I've kept a watch on you ." His voice was cold. Commanding. Draco knew, even if he wanted, he couldn't lie.

"I  hope  you will attend the Yule Ball. I hope we will get to know each other more. Until then." Peverell said suddenly in a charming voice , all signs of the previous coldness gone. And with a bow, Peverell left him standing alone in the garden, wondering about the bizarre conversation.

_________________________________________
________ __ Flashback Ends_ _____________

Needless to say, Draco attended the Yule Ball at the MACUSA that year.

And it was the best decision of his life.

Chapter Text

The Dark Lord looked at his Reapers. They were all looking at him with the same devotion they always had. They had no doubts in him in their minds mind.

There were chances that this will fail spectacularly. But he wouldn't back down now. Never.
With a final nod, he took a deep breath and took the three Hallows in his hands.

What happened next was the most weird experience he ever had. As soon as his hand touched the Hallows, everything around him turned black. Silence enveloped him like a vacuum. He felt like he was standing in a void. What felt like an eternity later, there was a small light faraway in some direction. It started spreading. And then all around him was a blinding light.

Slowly, he opened him eyes.

There was someone standing in front of him. He couldn't make out the beings' features as they were covered in billowing black robes. The color of the robes reminded him of the void. It was never-ending. They were like fluid. Flowing.

"Hadrian Peverell", their voice sounded old, ancient. "Or should I say, Master?"

"I think Hadrian or Harry will do."

"Hmm. You look like you don't want to be my Master, do you?"

"No. I know that a mortal shouldn't dream about becoming a Master to an ancient entity. You are much more powerful than I am. I lack in many things compared to yourself. Experience. Knowledge. Power. They are the base of the things that I lack compared to you. It's a fool's dream to desire such a thing", Harry said earnestly.

And he was honest. Ever since he knew about the Hallows and the tales about the Master of Death, he never wanted to become a master of an entity like Death.

"Then what do you want, Hadrian Peverell? If not to become my Master, why did you unite the Hallows? For power? You know that you are more powerful than almost every wizard in the mortal plane. Immortality? There are many other ways to achieve it. Then tell me why, Harry?", their voice was as indifferent as ever.
Harry couldn't tell whether the being was mocking him or not.

"Fear."

"Fear?"

"Yes, fear. My power may control my army, but what about the rest of the people? They fear the unknown. The Hallows provides it. Not many people know about them. And even less about the legend of the Master of Death. If the people know that they are facing something that is beyond their understanding, they will fear me. And that fear will keep them obedient. Less people will resist to my rule. And, of course, the immortality factor is a bonus too."

Death remained quiet for a while.

Then he said, "Very well, you amuse me, Harry. It has been a really long time since someone has entertained me this much. I'll give you the title of the Master of Death. But don't ever forget that I'm no slave. The title only means that you can communicate with me whenever you want. Don't ever confuse it with a slave at your beck and call."
Death ended in a menacing manner.

"I promise." Harry said sincerely.

"Hmm. There are a few things you should know as the Master of Death. You can't bring anyone back from the dead. Even I don't have the power to do so. You can't grant anyone immortality. You can control the creatures of Death in your plane, like the vampires, dementors, inferi, cerberus and thestrals. You have the power to control shadows and move through them."

"Alright."

"And the last requirement is that you'll have to find a mate."

"A what!?!", he asked, dearly hoping that he heard wrong.

"A mate. Partner."

So he didn't hear anything wrong, although he wished it were true.

"And may I ask why?"

Here, Death looked more serious than before, even if that was possible.
"For your sanity. It wouldn't do good to have a mad Master of Death running around. I've seen many people with great power going mad because of loneliness. When you're immortal you'll lose everyone you hold dear to one or the other day. You'll mourn for them for sometimes. Then you'll move on. Then after many years when you'll be sitting alone in a dusty old room, you'll remember them. They di, but their memories don't. Then slowly you'll start losing your sanity. New people will never equate to the ones you lose. That's why a mate will help. They'll remain with you. Forever. They'll help to keep the pain of losing your old family out. A constant by your side. "

"But you said that I can't grant immortality to anyone. Plus, won't you be like a companion by my side? Or me as yours?"

What happened next surprised Harry. Death laugh. I wasn't mocking. It was fond?

"Though I really appreciate a company Harry, remember that I can't remain forever in your plane. The more I stay there, the more deaths will occur. I will always have to leave you there for definite amount of time. As for granting immortality, there are a few old rituals which ties your mate's and your soul together. Remember, the body isn't immortal, the soul is. You choose to keep the same body. So, when your souls are tied, both of you become immortal."

Chapter Text

"Alright. So, I've to find a mate and tie my soul to them forever?"

"Yes."

"When do I exactly have to do this, this whole, finding a mate thing?"

"Whenever you want. Preferably before all your close friends and family die and you go insane."

"Thanks", he replied in a sarcastic tone. "So, what do we do now?"

"We shake our hands, you'll be the only person who can touch me, not even your mate can, and then if you want, we can go and terrorize your followers."

"Sounds like a great plan", he said gleeful. The thought of terrorizing someone after such a bizarre conversation sounded very appealing to him.

"And one more thing."

"What?"

"You can give up your title whenever you want. And since your soul is tied to your mate forever, even death can't keep you apart. If there are such things like after-life or reincarnation, you'll remain together."

Harry nodded. Then he asked, "You don't know what happens beyond death?"

"No, I don't."

They shook their hands.

The moment their hands met; Harry felt a great rush of power within himself. 

The next moment the Void appeared again and then he was standing in front of his Reapers.

They were all looking at him with half-wonder and half-fear.

He then heard a voice in his mind. Death's voice.
《Time works very differently in the mortal plane and my plane. For us more than 20 minutes might've passed. For them you have just touched the Hallows. They are all waiting to see what happens next.》

His face remained indifferent.

'Great. Thank you for telling me. And please, the next time you use your power I don't know about on me, especially in front of people, tell me beforehand.'

《I will.》Death didn't sound like they meant it.

The Dark Lord let some of his magic out. The effect was instantaneous. They all bowed.

"My Lord." They said in chorus.

"Rise", he said in his usual cold voice.

They once again raised to their feet. Slowly, one of his Knights, Luna Lovegood came forward and asked,
"Were you successful my Lord?"

"Yes"

'Can you show yourself to them.'

《I thought you'd never ask.》

The Dark Lord smirked. His eyes started glowing. Avada Kedavra green.

Slowly, behind his throne, darkness started spreading.

Everyone, including the Knights, took an unconscious step back. Then someone screamed.

Behind the Dark Lord, a being was floating in billowing never-ending black robes. The darkest color they'd ever seen. The being was wearing a hood. Their only visible feature were two glowing eyes. Like two stars at night. Their presence made some Reapers faint.

The picture the two individuals made, had one thought going through everyone's mind.
'They are inevitable.'

Chapter Text

"Students, I understand that you're all horrified by the incident that occurred in the United States. But remember that you all are within the wards of Hogwarts, which is in Britain. The wards here are more ancient than those around any Ministry ward. So, no harm will come to you. Moreover, if we get any information about any unusual events taking place in here, in Britain, I'll inform you. Please have your breakfast, you all have your first classes today."

It seemed to make the students a bit relieved. Slowly, the usual chatter started.

Tom was still looking at the newspaper. There was something about it that made him restless. Like it was a clue to a bigger mystery.

Snape then walked towards the Slytherin table to distribute the timetable. He seemed to be in a worse mood than ever. He looked ready to kill someone.

Finally, he reached Tom.
"Riddle", he sneered, "I heard that you abandoned your Prefect duties last night. I had warned the others that making you a Prefect is a mistake. But sadly, even with the Head of Slytherin disagreeing, they made you one."

With that, he quite literally threw the timetable Tom's way and went away.

Tom took the timetable and started reading it, trying to forget Snape's words. It wasn't the first time he said that. Snape said those words last year too. Word to word. And he hated him from his first year. He hated Tom even before he met him. Probably something to do with Dumbledore.

When he looked up from his timetable, his eyes locked with Professor Peverell. He was looking straight at him. The man had a strange look on his face, a mixture between amusement and understanding. The next moment, there was a squeal at the Ravenclaw table, and the Professor looked away.

Flushing, Tom went back to reading his timetable.

'Great, I have the first class with Professor Peverell.' They had five DADA classes a week. Finshing his breakfast in a rush, Tom got up to go to the DADA classroom.

Tom sat at his usual place in the class, in the front row at the center. Professor Peverell entered the class at the exact time.
He looked as handsome as always. He wore dark red robes and surprisingly black round glasses. His hair were beautiful as every, just was above his shoulder, falling in elegant curls.

"Good morning class, I'm Professor Peverell. And since I'm new, I would like to know your names," here he smiled mischievously (Tom swooned internally), "though I know that you're all sixth year students and not from the younger batches, and wouldn't like standing up one-by-one to introduce yourselves, let's make this interesting. I will erect a privacy ward, call you here one-by-one and you'll perform the hardest spell or charm you know. The privacy ward will prevent you from feeling that you need to be better than the others. Removes the sense of competition. And again, please perform the spells you Know and have done before. I'll really prefer having no accidents in my first class." With a final smirk, the Professor erected the ward and went behind it.

Soon there were excited chattering all around the class. This was the first time they got to show-off and practically do any spell.

"Aaron Smith." The professor called.

The Hufflepuff went inside smiling nervously.
Five minutes later he emerged with pride on his face. Slowly the students were called alphabetically.

Tom wondered which spell he should use. He could perform almost every spell upto the seventh year syllabus. The man didn't even mention whether the spell should be dark or light.

Of course, he wasn't stupid enough to use a dark spell without even knowing the man, but he was unsure about what to do. It had to be something very few people could do.

He looked around the classroom, trying to find some sort of inspiration. A picture behind the teacher's desk caught his attention.

He knew which spell he had to perform.

"Tom Riddle." The Professor called out.

Taking a deep breath, Tom entered the privacy ward. The ward stretched enough to fit in a small room.

Professor Peverell was standing in the centre of it.

He smiled at him and said, "Good morning Mr. Riddle, please stand here", he said pointing to the spot beside him, "to perform the spell. And once again, remember that this activity is for me to know your knowledge and capibilities. Please perform the spell you are confident that you can do. I'll not judge whatever you do." With that, he beckoned Tom forward.

Once again taking a deep breath, Tom went to stand beside the Professor and strengthened his resolve.

Concentrating on his memories, he said the spell.

"Expecto Patronum".

Chapter Text

A silver snake erupted from his wand and floated around the room. Tom immediately felt the warm comfort of the patronus enveloping him.

He glanced at the Professor and was confused. The Professor looked impressed, but he had a strange look in his eyes. He then looked at Tom and the polite smile was back on his face."I'm impressed, Mr. Riddle. I'd not thought that anyone except a few seventh years would be able to perform this charm. Though, I admit, I did think that you'll do something to set yourself apart from the class."

"Professor?" He asked.

Smirking, the Professor said, "Now, Mr. Riddle, don't tell me that you honestly believed that I didn't actually know anything about the students, did you?"

Shaking his head, he answered, "No."

The Professor smiled, "Good. Because I did read the ranking list of the all the years for every batch." Frowning, he said, "Though if I could, I would've read the whole student record, but we are not actually allowed to do so without the student's permission. Only the Headmaster and the Deputy Headmaster can do so. So, I had to be satisfied with the ranking list only."
Then he once again smiled and said, "I saw your name there, Mr. Riddle. You were the top of your batch for every year. That caught my attention. So, when I'd called you, I knew you would do soemthing interesting."

Tom seriously hoped that he wasn't blushing (though he knew it was in vain). "Thank you, Professor", he said sincerely.

The Professor looked at him with the same strange look in his eyes and nodded. "Please return back to your seat, Mr. Riddle. "

With that, Tom went back to his seat.
Sitting there, he looked at the picture behind the Professor's desk. It was of a snake. A boa constrictor.

Five minutes after the last student came back, Professor Peverell returned.
Smiling, he said, "I can say that I'm satisfied by your performance class. I want all of you to write an essay on the spell you performed, against whom it is used and how else can it be used other than what it is primarily used for. Be creative. There isn't a specific length for the assignment. Though I would prefer if you won't make it too short or too long."

Standing in front of the board, he said seriously, "Now, to the serious topic. I want to tell you that if anyone of you want to pursue an international Mastery in Defence, that student will have to start from the first year books used in schools other than Hogwarts."

Many outraged exclamations of 'whys' and 'whats' were heard all from everywhere.

The Professor continued, "Why? I'll tell you why. The syllabus of Defence taught at Hogwarts is very different from what is recommended by the ICW. You all are taught varying portions of Defence from its branches. Ah yes, there are different branches of Defence, like against Dark Arts, Light Arts, Grey Arts, Magical Creatures and Potions. Then there are Muggle Defense Arts, their weaponry and Duelling. There are many more categories, but for now let's focus on these. So, there are many different branches in Defence. So, to gain a Mastery in Defence, you should have the knowledge about all those things." He walked around the room, having the student's complete attention.

"Now, the name Defence Against Dark Arts is misleading in itself. Your syllabus covers about 100% Light Arts, 40% Grey Spells, 10% Dark Arts and 50% Magical Creatures." The Professor looked troubled by that.

He was not the only one. The whole class looked shocked at that. Many students had wanted to pursue a career with DADA, and now hearing what the Professor said worried them.

"What about the Aurors, Professor? They ought to have deep knowledge on the subject. So, what do they do?" One Hufflepuff questioned.

The Professor looked grim and said, "The auror training in almost every country takes about 2 years, whereas in Britain it's four and a half, almost five years. It's a wonder what they do for an extra two and a half years, isn't it?"

The students got their answer.

"Now, there is nothing I can do about it, neither can you. This is an issue which has lasted for about two decades. The only thing you can do is study hard the syllabus you're taught at Hogwarts and then if you wish, you can look for the textbooks outside Britain. Don't ask me, I'm not allowed to do so." He looked unhappy about that.

"You'll find the list in the library, under the Laws and Codes section. You can purchase it through an owl oreder, but I am not legally allowed to teach you anything beyond what the school dictates, so, please don't use any of the more... explosive spells in the school, and try to get in touch with some tutors during the holidays. I know it sounds boring, but it's completely your choice. For now, let's move ahead with our lesson.."

By the end of the class, Tom had one more reason to praise the man.
He was a really good teacher. He was passionate about the subject, was patient, believed in a more interactive approach and was kind. Every student in the class had spoke up at least twice in his lessons. Even the most quiet or the uninterested ones.

The class also got to know that he hated bullying, when some students from both the houses laughed at some poor student when they stuttered while answering. And damn, the man was scary when he got angry. He was ruthless. They learned their lesson. Don't anger Professor Peverell. Just his words are enough for him to make his point and punish you.

Tom never thought he had ever seen Malfoy and his goons look so embarrassed and ready to cry.

Though, Tom also noticed that strange look in Professor Peverell's eyes whenever he looked at Tom. It never diminished. If anything, it grew more. On the bright note, no one else noticed it. Or even received it. 

Chapter Text

Albus Dumbledore sat in his room, drinking his favourite wine, to celebrate, now that the things were finally going his way. After almost twenty years, he got what he wanted. Or more specifically- a person where Albus wanted him to be. Hadrian Peverell.

Albus had tried to get in contact with the boy for the last ten years, but had failed repeatedly. Whenever got to the places where the boy was said to be, the brat disappeared.

He had wanted the boy to attend Hogwarts, so that he could keep an eye on him, and preferably make the boy dependent on him. Completely obedient. Like James had been. Hell, he had wanted the boy to stay in Britain with the Dursleys, so that the boy would percieve Albus as his hero.

But no!

Somehow, the brat ended up in America. And then went to Ilvermorny.  A school well-known for its diverse syllabus. And providing a home for the orphans. He wanted the boy to be in the Muggle world so that he knew less about the wizarding politics. After James' death, due to some old pureblood law, Albus had lost his control over the Peverell seats. So, he had intended to get them back from Peverell Jr.

But no! It didn't happened.

Not only the boy became the Lord of the Peverell House, he is also somehow related to the Gryffindor House. On the top of that, he was good at politics. Too good.

Albus wouldn't have worried about that too much, if the brat wasn't destroying (rather unknowingly, he thought) his painstakingly made world. Though Albus was not able to ban Dark Magic from every country, atleast he made sure to keep the outside world away from the Briain (which was exactly the way he wanted).

But know, because of some reason, the boy was interested in British politics, probably because of his origin, and was destroying his work here.

Albus knew that letting the boy teach here was risky, the boy could bring more outside influence to Britain. 
But he knew that he could show the boy the right path. The Light.

It had all started with Gellert.

Albus could say that it was love at first sight.

They met each other when they were both eighteen.

He always knew that there was something different about the boy. The days they were together were the happiest days of his life.

At first their talks were filled with warmth and laughs. They used to endlessly talk about everything and nothing.

Then one day Gellert started talking about the Dark Arts.

Coming from a strictly Light family, Albus was taught to condemn Dark Magic. And he did.
But when Gellert would talk, Albus couldn't condemn him. So, he listened. Slowly, Gellert started talking about becoming a Dark Lord. At first, he tried to stop him, but when he told him about ruling the muggles, Albus conceded. (He always wanted revenge for what they did to his sister.)

So, he started supporting Gellert. Though he wouldn't use Dark Magic himself, he supported his love. They talked about ruling the world.

They talked about living forever.

That was when their first argument started. 

Albus believed in the legend of the Deathly Hallows. Master of Death. He knew that if they could find and unite them, they could achieve their goal of imortality. And much more than that.

The only problem was Gellert. He thought that the legend was fake. Said that it was a "child's tale".

Gellert found another way to achieve immortality.

Horcruxes.

Albus tried to stop him from creating them. He knew that if Gellert went ahead with his plan, there will only be death and destruction.

He tried. And it killed Ariana.

They separated and went on their own paths after it.

Albus knew that Gellert did create Horcruxes. Three of them.

He and James were the ones to destroy them.

When Gellert died, Albus knew that a piece of him died with him too.

After that, he vowed that he will make sure nobody ever uses Dark Magic. 'Whatever it takes', he had vowed to himself.
He hated Dark Magic and its users from then on.

From then, he was ruthlessly against dark magic. He knew somewhere deep down that what he did was wrong. But he stamped down it.

He manipulated people to do his what he wanted and ensured that his name remained clean. He wanted to be the one to make the world pure. Free of the dark and evil influence of the Dark Magic.

He was the only one to take the risk. To sacrifice.

By his control, laws were passed to hunt the dark creatures. Ancient scripts and tomes were burned. Dark witches and wizards were killed.

'For the Greater Good', he told always himself.

Chapter Text

Then there was James.

The boy was powerful. Of course he was, a Peverell.

Albus had tried to get in contact with the the family for many years before James came to Hogwarts.
Actually, James was one of the reasons why he took the job as a Transfiguration teacher at Hogwarts.

The Peverells were a well-known family in the wizarding world. Many members of the family had contributed a lot for their world.
And a few people also knew them because of the legend of the Deathly Hallows.

The tale of the three brothers.

The Peverell brothers.

It wasn't a well known fact. Albus too only knew about it due to his obsession with the Hallows.

The whole family had lived in hiding for many years. They did their Wizangmot duties from within their estates. Only a few people had actually met them.

It was Albus' dream to meet them. And to take the Hallows.

James was the first person from the family to attend Hogwarts.
He was an innocent child. Hidden away from the world, James was overwhelmed by so many children at Hogwarts. The boy wanted to be free. To not hide away in some old manor.

Rebellious.

That made the child easy to manipulate. Some words of regret and pity along with a many subtle hints of "If I could, I'd help you"s had the boy in his grasp. He had tried to gain the location of the manor from the boy, but he remained tight-lipped about it. Same happened when he asked about the Hallows.

Even after the boy joined his Order, he never revealed the secret. Albus would've applauded the boy's loyalty if it weren't hindering his own plans. He then knew that he'll never get any information about Hallows from the boy.

So, he knew what he had to do.

James had to die. And have a child.

It good thing was that the boy had married and fathered a child at a young age, or else Albus would've had to take drastic steps.

Lily was a nice, sweet girl. But she had to die too.

When he knew that the Peverells were going to have a child, he planned to kill the them.

Controlling the boy would've been easy. Keep him away from the wizarding world and he'll trust anything Albus would say. An obedient pawn. That was what Albus had planned.

The boy would know about the location of the Peverell Manor from Gringotts and about the Hallows from the manor.  Then he would let Albus know that information and Albus would get the Hallows. A simple plan.

During the battle, he got a very unsettling information from one of his spies. Gellert was rumored to have an unbeatable wand. The Elder Wand.

He had to take James' help to defeat Gellert. Only a Peverell could defeat someone with the Elder wand.

James was known as the Vanquisher of Grindelwald. The Saviour of the Wizarding World. Albus hated that. Albus hates that. It was him who'd planned everything, who'd spent many sleepless night strategizing everything to the most minute detail. And James got all the credit just because of his birth.

After that, he had send the Peverells into hiding, saying that the Death Eaters were still out free in the world and would want revenge for their fallen master.
James hated it but did so for his child.
Their house was protected under the Fidilus Charm.

Albus knew who the secret keeper was. A traitor. Masterfully, he manipulated the man just perfectly for him to spill the Peverell's hideout to the remaining Death Eaters. They attacked Godric's Hollow the next day.

James and Lily died in the attack. Everything went according to the plan.

A few hours after the attack, Albus went to St. Mungo's and took little Hadrian with him. Fame could do wonders, very few questioned his decision.

He took the boy to the Dursley's residence and left him there.

Albus knew that the Dursley's hated magic and that the boy would be treated poorly there, but it was for the greater good.

Everything went according to the plan.

So, the news of Hadrain Peverell in America angered him.

But not now, he had the boy within his grasp.

Then came Tom Riddle.

Albus hated the boy.

A parselmouth. A Dark Wizard from birth.

He knew that the boy had immense power. It reminded him too much of Gellert. The world couldn't face another Dark Lord. So, he knew that he needed to kill the boy.

Unfortunately, he couldn't do that when he was at Hogwarts. And to do it during the summer vacation was impossible.
It was a secret, but every child living in the muggle world had wards surrounding the place they lived.

It served three purposes.
See to it that the child doesn't use magic in front of a muggle.
If accidental magic is used, the authorities should come to know right away in order to control the situation.
And to protect the child from any malicious magical being. Including humans. (If anybody did, they come to know who it is right away)

So, he couldn't kill the boy there.

At least, he kept the boy away from knowing his roots. That intelligent mind was enough, there was no need to let the boy live in the wizarding world for a long time.

But the boy wasn't his main concern as of now. The boy was not strong or ruthless enough to do something too drastic. He had no connections or resources to do anything. So, he would deal with the boy as soon as he leaves Hogwarts.

Everything was going according to his plan.

He looked back at his chess board.

Chapter Text

Days passed by quickly for Tom. His performance in class was as good as ever. His days were going great, except the whole 'You're not a Slytherin' thing.
Tom had learned to ignore it for years. Though good performance may be a part of the reason he was happy, the main reason was Professor Peverell.

The man had made his existence worth it. He wasn't like Snape or Dumbledore, he was firmly against partiality. He wasn't like Slughorn, their Herbology professor, he only praised where it was deserved and was always available to help the students. There was no student that didn't like him.

Same couldn't be said about the teachers; some teachers. Specifically Snape and Dumbledore.

Snape seemed to hate the very idea of Hadrian Peverell. Whenever his name was uttered near Snape, he would go on a tirade on how lousy, arrogant and incompetent Professor Peverell was (which he wasn't). Even the Slytherins had started to feel embarrassed whenever Snape started his rant.

The Defence Professor, on the other hand, looked amused whenever it was mentioned. When asked why, shrugging, he had answered, "I've never met that man in my life. I don't know why he seems to hate me so much. Whatever is the reason, I hope someday we talk about it and come to an understanding like adults. For now, I don't know, and he doesn't talk to me without murdering me with his eyes, so yes, it amuses me."

And Dumbledore looked at the said Professor as if he was a really interesting insect, which needs to be dissected. There were rumors that the the Professor Peverell had called the man "creepy" when he had asked him to meet him in his office during an on-going lecture.

Though it made Tom realize that Professor Peverell was not a fan of Dumbledore. Which made him like, no admire, the Professor even more.

The winter break had finally started and luckily for him, almost every Slytherin had left the castle to celebrate the holidays with their family.

It was the Yule Day and Tom was going to the Room of Requirements. It was after the curfew, but luckily, he was a Prefect and could get away with it easily if he ran into any professor.

As soon as he entered the Room, he knew instinctively that there was another person in it. It was really dark, so it was hard to make out who the other person was. It seemed that the other person was not aware of his presence.

After pondering whether to leave or stay, he moved towards the person.

It seemed that the person wasn't as unaware of his presence as Tom had thought.

When he was just close enough to the person, the fireplace roared to life, and the place was filled with light.

After momentarily closing his eyes and opening them again, Tom almost gaped at the other person.

It was Professor Peverell.

His ever-perfect lovely hair was a mess. Even his glasses were missing. He looked surprised. (An expression which wasn't seen much on his face. Tom was lucky to see it twice)

Clearing his throat, the professor spoke, "Mr. Riddle, it's a surprise to see you here." 'Merlin, his voice... Stop it.'

"Uh, you too, Professor."

Smiling the man said, "Have a seat. I hope you don't mind having me as your company."

Blushing, he replied, "Not at all Professor. But don't you mind me sitting here?"

"Not at all Mr. Riddle."

Tom looked around the room. It was a elegant looking, cozy room with brown walls, a dark green sofa, a side table, a bookshelf with many books and some plants on it. Yet, the room did not looked like it suited the Professor.

"Ah, this room looks like my friend's living room. He's an interesting man if you like casual debates. Honestly, I think he just likes to argue a lot. Actually, you know his brother, Mr. Malfoy."

Tom, even if he wanted, couldn't stop the grimace which came over is face. After a second, he thought he might've offended the Professor, as just moments before he said that he was friends with Malfoy's brother.

He opened his mouth to apologize when he heard the man laugh.

"I understand, Mr. Riddle, why you don't like him. You don't need to apologize. The only person I like in the whole Malfoy family is Draco. That little shit is very different than his older brother."

Stunned, Tom could only nod. The man was speaking too much and too freely at the moment.

Tilting his head, the Professor said, "I don't think you're comfortable standing there for such a long time, Mr. Riddle. Please have a seat."

There was only one seat. Beside the Professor, on the couch.
Having no other option, Tom sat beside him.

They sat in silence for a while.

Sneaking glances at the man, Tom observed that the man was in a very deep thought. The strange look in his eyes was present.

After a while, the Professor started talking about some new theories raised in the subject of defense. Slowly, Tom's hesitance melted away and they started talking. Nothing personal, just theories and facts, but still they talked. But somehow, their talk turned towards him. Professor Peverell also started calling him by his name.

The Professor asked, "If you don't mind me asking about it, Tom, when did you learn the Patronas Charm? I've not yet seen another student at Hogwarts do it, so I concluded that it wasn't something taught to you in class."

Smiling proudly, Tom said, "I learned the charm on my own in third year."

This was the third time Tom had managed to surprise the man.

"Impressive."

Tom was squealing on the inside.

"But may I ask why?"

"You remember the rogue Dementors running away from Azkaban three years ago?"

"Yes. It was quite a news."

"I encountered one of them in the muggle world. Luckily for me, there was an auror patrolling the area where I live. He was able to stop the dementor from sucking out my soul. It was.... disturbing, honestly. I did not want to experience that ever again. So, I searched for ways to defeat the dementors and found out about the Patronus Charm. That was when I promised myself to learn it. I feared that if I encountered those creatures once again, I'll lose my soul. It was difficult at first. I was only able to produce a corporal patronas after almost a year of practicing the charm."
His face showed the frustration he felt during that time.

Looking back at the Professor, Tom stopped himself from smiling. The man looked thoroughly impressed. And the strange look in his eyes had grown.

Leaning forward, he said mischievously, as if saying a secret, "You know, Tom, I'm firmly against partiality and favoritism, yet I can say that you're my favorite student. Don't tell to anyone though." He gave him a wink after saying the last part.

Chapter Text

Tom was blushing furiously, he was sure of that. The man, on whom he had a crush on for months now, had just admitted that he was his favorite student. And that wink....

Somehow he managed to answer, "T-thank you Professor."

The man looked so fondly at him, Tom might've been looking like a tomato at the moment, but wouldn't have cared. Nobody had ever looked at him with such affection (even if it was not the way he wanted).

Leaning back, the Professor added, "Though, I've to say that even my favorite student couldn't keep himself awake in Professor Binns' class."

Tom looked wide-eyed, embarrassed.

Professor Peverell started laughing.

Tom still couldn't get over the fact that he had never seen the professor so relaxed before.

The man was always so put-together regardless of where he was. Even in the pictures of his vacations in the newspapers and magazines, he never looked this relaxed. But here he was, with Tom, laughing at the silliest jokes, sharing his mischievous adventures with him. His hair were messy and his glasses were missing too.

When the Professor stopped laughing, he said, "Don't look so embarrassed, Tom, even I couldn't keep myself awake in that class."

Wait a minute, "You've been in his class?"

Now, the man looked even more mischievous.

Smirking slightly, he answered, "Yes, a nice disillusionment and silencing charm can get you anywhere. I'd heard many rumors about his class and had even heard many older people say that they couldn't stay awake in Binns' class.It made me curios. So, I went in myself. I swear, I heard him talking about the Third Revolutionary Warrior Goblin from the Perth War, and next thing I remember is waking up to the sound of students leaving the classroom. And I promise, I've never ever slept in any class from when I've started going to school. Even in primary school."

Tom couldn't help it, he started laughing. Both of them were wheezing by the end.

Feeling a bit brave, Tom asked, "Have you slipped in anyone else's class?"

"Every one of them."

Tom looked at the Professor in amazement.

The man added, "Do you remember the giant bat in your Potions class a week ago?"

He remembered. Snape was in the middle of lecturing Tom for having a perfect potion (honestly, the man!), when suddenly a giant bat erupted from behind Malfoy. They had to leave the class then. That day Potions class was cancelled for everyone. Nobody had seen the sour professor for the whole day.

"It was you?" He asked, bewildered.

The man only smirked.

"Wow."

They sat together in silence. It was a comfortable one.

"Are you in a courtship?"

"What!?" He squeaked. He was surprised by the sudden question.

"I'm sorry. I shouldn't have asked you such a personal question."

"N-no! I mean yes! Wait no-! I'm not in a courtship, I mean."

"Oh?" The man tilted his head, looking sincerely curious.

Once again blushing (seriously if this goes on, his face will permanently remain red), he asked, "Why do you look so confused?"

There, his mischievous smirk was on his face once again, "With the amount of people in the school staring at you with stars in their eyes, I wondered."

Tom was now staring at his Professor with his jaw hanging.

The man laughed once again and said, "Oh Tom, I'm not much older than you. Heck, I'm not even four years older than you. Of course, I notice the romances going around in the school."

Tom merely covered his face with his hands. The man, who always looked so distant, in spite of being friendly in front of people, was talking about school romances in front of him.
'Deep breathes Tom. Deep breathes. Please don't embarrass yourself in front of the man. Please.'

"Oh come on, Tom, I'm just stating the facts. Don't look so embarrassed." Tom could hear the smirk in his voice!

"When is your birthday anyways?" The Professor asked.

Looking up, he answered, "31st of December."

"Wow. On the New Year. So this will be your second time getting the offers." Oh my God, Tom was going to die today.

"Yes."

"Any plans on accepting one?"

"No."

"Hmm. I understand. Do you even read all the offers?"

"No, I don't."

"You should, you know?. Merlin knows, maybe one of them are actually good."

Tom understood what the man was saying. One starts to get the courtship offers starting from their 16th birthday. But they are offered only on one's birthday. Almost every pureblood followed the tradition. Some muggleborns and halfblood do and some don't. What the Professor meant is that not every offers are good. Some actually ask the receiver to give up their freedom to do whatever they wanted, to enter the courtship. And if you are the one taking your spouse's name, you'll have to listen to the Head of their house. Your spouse may not even be the Lord, but you had agreed on the terms, and there was nothing you could do. Magical divorces were a headache. So yes, you should consider wisely before getting into a courtship.

"I'll see."

Hesitating a bit, Tom asked, "What about you, Professor?"

The man closed his eyes and leaned back, "The letters are burned even before I set my eyes on them. And I've never sent one."

Tom nodded, even though the professor could not see it.

They both sat in silence once again. It was quite late.

The man then stood up and said, "You're a really pleasant company, Tom. Though I should go now. Thank you."

Smiling at him, Tom said, "You too sir."

The Professor had reached the door when he turned around and said, "And Happy Yule, Tom. Good night." With that he left the room.

Tom stayed for some more time in the room. He was feeling so happy.

After some time he left too.

"Happy Yule sir." He said to the empty room just before leaving.

Chapter Text

Tom woke up in the morning and immediately cursed. It was the day he never liked. His birthday.

Even as a child, Tom never liked his birthday. Maybe once he did. But not now.

His experience in the orphanage had made him hate this day.
Every child got a gift, however small it was. Everyone except for Tom.
He was the Devil's child. A devil's child doesn't deserve to live, let alone get presents on it's birthday. If the matron, Mrs. Cole, had her way, Tom might not even be alive today. 

Tom knew that the only reason he was not killed was Marie. She was the cook of the orphanage. Where everyone either avoided or bullied him for his magic, Marie used to sit with him. They never talked. She was unable to speak. Whenever he got any bruises, she'd tend him. She still works at the orphanage. Somehow she always persuaded the matron to leave him alone.

Shaking his head, Tom got ready for breakfast.

As he was getting ready, he noticed the pile of envelopes on the table, in the corner of the room.

He groaned. 'I don't want to go through that shit.'

Suddenly he remembered his conversation with Professor Peverell the other night.

" Do you even read all the offers?"

"No I don't."

"You should. Merlin knows, maybe one of them are actually good." 

Sighing, he went to the pile of letters.

There were at least fifteen of them.

Flipping through them, he stopped, seeing one family crest.

He heart stopped beating for a second.

Gulping, he stared at the letter. He couldn't believe it. He inspected the crest, thinking it was a prank from one of his classmates. It wasn't. He shook his head, making sure he wasn't still sleepy and seeing things. The crest remained.

It was the Peverell Crest.

With shaking hands, he opened the letter. The handwriting belonged to Professor Peverell. It was his, Tom knew that. 

He then proceeded to read the letter, hardly believing that it was real.

But the intentions were clearly expressed in the letter. Hadrian Peverell wanted to court him. Him! If he had any less control on himself, he would've fainted.

Tom sat down, taking deep breaths. He knew that the letter was real, no one could copy a family crest.

He read the letter once again. It was surreal. The man, on whom he was obssessing over ever since he'd stepped into Hogwarts, wanted to court him. 

Slowly, he turned to the marriage contract. It was good. No restrictions on him. Just had to take the Peverell name. He could do it, he hated his last name anyways.

'Oh Merlin, I've to answer him.'

Rushing to his study table, he started composing the letter.

After seven tries, he wrote a descent one.

He looked back at the Professor's proposal. His handwriting was elegant. Beautiful. The proposal was formal, as it should be. There was a rule to write a courtship offer. It should be formal. No flowery words or gifts. It should be neutral, as per the tradition.

Taking his letter, Tom went to the Owlery.

After sending the letter, Tom casted the Tempus Charm. 'Damn, I missed breakfast.' Sighing, he went back to the dorms.

By lunch time, Tom was a bundle of nerves. He had to actually face the Professor now. On the top of that, because of the less number of students, there was only one table in the Great Hall.

Gathering his courage, Tom went towards the Great Hall.

'This is a bad idea, maybe I should go back. Yes, I'm going back.' Tom was walking back and forth in front of the doors of the Hall. 'But what if Professor Peverell changes his mind? Should I even call him Professor?' Many thoughts were running in his mind.

Making his mind, Tom made to go back to the dorms. 'Coward', his mind whispered.

It seemed that the fates didn't want that.

As Tom made his way towards the dorms, Professor Peverell entered the corridor along with Professor Slughorn.

"Tom, my boy! It's good to see you! Hadrian and I were just entering the Great Hall. Why don't you join us?"
Slughorn said.

Having no other choice, Tom smiled politely at him and followed them towards the Great Hall.

Sneaking a glance at Professor Peverell, Tom found the man looking intently at him. Blushing, Tom looked back at the table laid in the center of the Hall.

The only seats left on the table were two in the farthest corner and one beside Dumbledore.

Professor Peverell turned to Slughorn and said, "Horace, why don't you go and sit with Albus. I remember you wanted to ask him about some plants and transfiguration theory."

"Oh yes! Thank you, Hadrian, for reminding me about that. I'll tell you about that theory before the holidays end You see, it's about mandrake and using's it's roots as a base for-"

"Good evening, Horace, Hadrian." Dumbledore spoke, smiling at them. "Hadrian, why don't you-"

"Ah, I need to go. But we'll talk about it. Good-bye, Hadrian, Tom." Slughorn chuckled and walked towards a disappointed Dumbledore.

"Creep." Professor Peverell whispered, looking at Dumbledore. He waved at Slughorn and turned to face Tom. "Why don't we take our seats, Mr. Riddle?"

Tom nodded and followed the man. They both went and sat in the corner, side-by-side.

Chapter Text

Tom was shuffling nervously in his seat during the whole meal. The Professor said nothing except a whispered "relax" in a soothing voice. It did it's job. Partially.

Luckily for Tom, they only talked about some Defence theory and tactics along with some history of the spells.

Dumbledore was, as always, shooting suspicious glances at him. Tom merely ignored the man. He had a much more interesting person sitting beside him. Even though they were not talking about anything serious, the man had a way with his words. It captivated people. Tom was sure that the man could talk about Goblin Rebellion and the whole class will hang on his every word.

Finally when the meal ended, the Professor leaned slightly closer to him and whispered, "Please meet me in my office at nine."

Tom nodded.

At 8:55, Tom was waiting in front of the Professor's office. He was still nervous, pacing back and forth in the corridor. He had five minutes to compose himself.

Time passes by quickly.

He knocked the door to the Professor's classroom.

"Enter."

He entered the room. The Professor was wearing shirt and trousers. He wasn't wearing his usual robes above his outfit. 'He's looks so ho- different.'

"Good evening, Tom." He said, smiling.

"Good evening, sir."

"Please don't call me sir or professor, Tom. Call me, Harry."

Harry. It sounded like a name only people he is close to were allowed to call.

"Alright, si- I mean, H-harry." Tom cursed his stuttering. He shifted on his feet once again.

Blinking, Professor Peverell, 'Harry', he corrected himself, stood up and said, "Let's go to my room. One can never know when some student or professor barges inside."

They went in his office, but didn't stop there. In the corner of Harry's office, there was a inconspicuous door. Harry opened the door and gestured Tom to follow him.

Inside, there was a living room.

They went and sat on a couch. It reminded him of their conversation in the Room of Requirements.

"So, we have to talk about the courtship." Harry frowned a bit at that.

Suddenly, Tom was filled with the fear that the Professor may not even be interested in him the way Tom was, and he just someone with a head on their shoulder for a spouse. Or maybe it wasn't even that. Maybe he had some guardian or sorts and they'd advised him to do it. It wasn't uncommon within the purebloods.

Seeing his expression, the man said immediately, "Hey! Don't worry. I'm not second guessing or something, or whatever you're thinking. I asked you for marriage because I'm genuinely interested in you. I'm only making this face because this is my first time doing this. I mean all this loving and heart-to-heart talking is seriously new to me. I've no idea what to talk about." He looked lost and a bit wary by the end of his explanation.

It soothed Tom's worries that Harry wasn't indifferent to the 'maybe-relationship'.

"It's okay. I understand. This is the to me too. Honestly, even I don't know what to say."

They both smiled awkwardly at each other.

"Alright, hmm, do you have any question you want to ask?" Harry asked.

"Yes, actually." Looking down, he asked the question which he had on his mind from the moment he got the letter, "Why me?"

Smiling softly, Harry said, "Why not you? From the moment I saw you, I wanted you. Sounds kinda creepy for a professor to say about his student, but it is true. I am not good with feelings Tom, so I cannot exactly say what about you that attracts me the most."

Tom blushed at that. Now he understood the strange look in the Professor's eyes. It was desire. And possessiveness. How much ever he tried to curb it, Tom knew that the other man was possessive. It was clear in his voice.

"A-alright."

"But let me tell you something Tom, if you accept me, please understand that I'm a possessive man. I won't force you, but I'll do everything in my power to make you not leave me."
Did his eyes flash green for a second? No, he was probably too high from this conversation itself.

Tom nodded.

Shaking his head, Harry said, "No. Say it, Tom, say it that you understand. Please dont take this lightly. This is very serious."

"I understand, Harry."

Harry nodded with satisfaction.

Standing up, he asked, "Do you want eat something, Tom? I have cookies."

Bewildered at the sudden change of the conversation, he said,"Yes?"

Raising one eyebrow, Harry smiled and went inside another room.

Five minutes later, he emerged with a plate of cookies in his hands

Offering him the plate, Harry sat back in his place.

Tom looked at the cookies. They looked and smelled good. Taking one, he took a bit.

They were even better than the ones sold in Hogsmeade. He hummed appreciatively.

The man was staring smugly at him. Clearing his throat, Tom asked, "They are delicious, where did you get them?"

Harry looked almost offended sound and said, "Why do you think they are bought? I baked them."

Tom looked at the man in disbelief.

Harry suddenly had a mischievous look on his face. Leaning really close towards Tom's face, he asked in a low voice,"What? You don't think I can't cook? I will tell you, cooking is one of my many other talents."

Tom turned red at the insinuation. 'Merlin.'

Harry leaned back and asked casually, "So, what do you think about them?"

"W-what?"

"The cookies."

"O-oh. They are delicious." He cursed his stuttering.
Tom rarely lost his cool facade. But it seemed Harry had the ability to break it as easily as breathing.

"Thank you. If you want them, you can ask me any day. I always bake a batch of them."

Tom realized the man wanted to impress him. Not the way most of the purebloods tried, with their show of wealth and power, but doing something so mundane and unexpected. It was sweet. Nobody ever expected Hadrian Peverell could cook.
Tom felt a tingle of warmth in him. 'Merlin, can the man be anymore perfect?'

Smiling bashfully, he said, "Yes, I will."

Harry smiled at him.

They then started to talk about themselves, wanting to know more about each other.

My Lord,
We  found  them. Little Hangleton. Family of three.

K.

Much later, the Dark Lord was sitting in front of the Riddles, in the Riddle Manor.

"You have five minutes to explain yourself Mr. Riddle. My Lord doesn't like being kept waiting." His right-hand Knight said.

Looking at the cold green eyes staring at him, Tom Riddle Sr. knew that he should start talking.

And he did.

Chapter Text

They had talked for hours.

Harry had told Tom that he could choose whether or not to tell anyone.
When he asked about the backlash Harry might of dating face because of dating a student, the man only waved his hand.

At the end, Tom chose not to tell anyone.

He then left the Professor's quarters minutes before twelve.

He was just outside the room when Harry stood up and gave him a wrapped box. Leaning down, he kissed his cheek and said, "Happy birthday, Tom."

Tom was sure he had never felt so happy in life. (And had never flushed so red in life)

Next morning, Tom woke up early. It was the day the students would came back. He sat and leaned against the headboard, and picked the present which sat untouched on his bedside table.

It was covered in blue wrapping paper with silver ribbon.

Tentatively, he opened the box.

He stared at the object lying inside the box with surprise and amazement.

It was a black ring, with black and royal blue colour design in the center, covering the circumference of the ring.

It was beautiful.

Inside the box, there was a note.

Opening it, he read.

_________________________________________

Dear Tom,

Happy  belated birthday, my sweet snake.

I'm really sorry that I didn't give you the ring in my room. To be honest, I was scared about your reaction if you did not like it and I feel disappointed in myself because of it.

I hope you  don't   mind  spending  the   weekend   with  me.

Yours,
Harry
_________________________________________

Tom smiled softly at the letter. He understood why Harry did so. (He would've done the same)

He blushed slightly at the 'my sweet snake'. It seemed that the man always found some way to charm him.

Looking back at the ring, Tom put it on. It was truly beautiful.

Tom was in the Great Hall, having breakfast. Students were coming back from the holidays today. Feeling eyes on him, he turned to look at the teacher's table. Harry was looking at him.

Discreetly, Tom took a sip from his glass, making sure that the ring was visible to Harry.

The Professor had a satisfied and relieved smile on his face, and turned back to Slughorn who was calling him.

Smiling, Tom went back to eating his breakfast.

'Harry', he thought smugly. Nobody in the school, except him, would call him by that name. Both of them were in a courtship. It was surreal. If he could, Tom would've danced in the middle of the Great Hall. But well, he had a reputation to maintain. 

By the time the owls had arrived with the newspapers and packages, every student was seated in the Hall.

It felt like having a déjà vu.

Someone gasped. Heads turned to the newspapers. Many gasped.

Tom started reading the Daily Prophet.

A NEW DARK LORD !?!

Yes readers, this  isn't a joke.

Last night, a residence are near Little Hangleton was attacked by some wizards. The attack was totally unexpected, so no aurors could immediately reach the striked area for rescue, which resulted in the deaths of many residents of Little Hangleton.

The aurors reached the town half-an-hour after the attack started. Unfortunately, there were wards surrounding the town, which took the aurors over an hour to take down. Even when they crossed the wards, the attack had not stopped. The wizards continued to the fight.

Eight aurors lost their lives in the tragic attack. Most of the residents of the town (wizards and muggles alike) were killed.
And what's even more horrifying is that all the children from the town were kidnapped by the robed assilants.

The  wizards  who struck were masked, so there was no way to identify the individuals. According to a survivor , the leader of those assilants was also present there, and he was said to be the most vicious one out of all.

'Those wizards were very dangerous. And  precise . Not missed one shot.'  Junior Auror Davids said, while on the scene.

'It was horrific. And those monsters were enjoying it.' Mrs. Harts, a local resident of the town, was heard saying.

Very few were able to save their lives last night . Some were heard saying   that there was a very "death-like" presence surrounding the town for a few days now. Though, they couldn't  exactly  explain   what  they meant  by   it .

A 'message' was left behing by the group, which can make one's blood  freeze.

Jonathan Matthew, a  high-ranking  member in the Ministry,  was  strung up, dead, in the center of  the  residence area. A message was written above him, in his blood, which said:
"Dark Lord Hades has risen".

No clue on the identity  of this  Dark Lord has been found.

But  one   thing  is clear. These are the  wizards who had murdered the Selwyns. And these people are dangerous.

Like the  murder  at the DOM, no magical signatures, except those  of the  aurors and residents, were  found .

What will happen next? What does the new Dark Lord wants? Who will stop them?
It has been only two decades  since   the  defeat of the  last  Dark Lord.
Will this  terror  of Dark Lords ever end?

Only time will tell.

We, at the Daily Prophet, hope  that  these dangerous wizards  are caught soon and the members of the  Wizarding World  never   face   the horror that a Dark Lord is.

-Natasha Evans

Chaos, once again.

And Tom noticed, Dumbledore looked suspiciously pale, again.

'Curious.'

Chapter Text

The days went on.

There were many more attacks by the Dark Lord.
Every main target of the attack was strung up, with a triangular symbol above their bodies, during the raids. They were usually high-ranking members of the Wizarding World.

Though every attack took place in Britain.

People also got to know the name of the new Dark Lord's army.

Reapers.

They were much more deadly and intelligent than the Death Eaters were.
Where the Death Eaters were bloodthirsty, the Repears were like trained warriors.

And even their Lord was said to be more powerful than Grindelwald was.

He was said to have demonic eyes. Poisonous green eyes. Just like the killing curse.

And one more peculiar thing was that, wherever they attacked, the place was said to have a "death-like" presence.

Everyone was scared.

One could actually taste the terror within the magical Britain.

"It tastes good, doesn't it?" Harry asked.

"I'm sorry, what?"

"The gravy. I said it tastes good." Harry pointed towards his plate. They were having dinner together in Harry's room, and he'd ordered the food from some fancy restaurant.

"Oh, yes. Yes, it does." Tom answered. He should stop getting so distracted easily.

Tom also noticed that Harry was more busy than usual. Everyday, he got over a dozen of Ministry letters. When he asked about it, Harry smiled wearily and said, "They need a hero".

It worried him. He knew that Harry was powerful, but Merlin help him, he was terrified of the notion of Harry facing the Dark Lord.

He pleaded Harry not to go and try to fight with the Dark Lord. When he said that, Harry only stared at him for a long moment and said, "I can promise you, Tom, that I'll never go and fight the Dark Lord."
There was a strange note in this voice when he said that.

The only good news was that they got to spend a lot of time together.

Tom observed that Harry also wore a ring on his finger, which was similar to his. The only difference was that the professor's ring was viridian in the center.

The time they spent together was absolute bliss. Sometimes they had food and drinks, or Harry graded the papers and Tom did his homework, or both of them read books in silence, or sometimes Harry taught him Defence (more than what was taught at Hogwarts). They always laughed and joked.

In short, they were content.

Of course, it wouldn't last for long.

During one of his visits, Harry decided that Tom should meet his familiar.
As expected, Tom was thrilled by the prospect.

They were seated in Harry's quarters.

Tom wondered what animal could be Harry's familiar.
He had met his owl, Hedwig. The sweet girl adored him.

When Harry came back, Tom was surprised.

The Professor had a ten feet long snake curled around his shoulders. A boa constrictor.

"Woah..wow." He said.

Harry smiled, relieved, amd said, "Tom, I  would like you to meet Serene."

And then, turning towards the snake, he said, "And Serene, this is Tom."

The snake lifted her head towards Tom and asked, "The mate you were talking about?"

Tom was surprised to see a light blush on the professor's cheek, though he hid it well.

"Yes, Serene."

The snake slithered towards. Kneeling, Tom offered the snake his hand. Serene flicked her tongue towards his hand, and nodded, in what he hoped was approval.

"Hmm...  He's not scared of me, Master. I   approve ."

The man laughed and said, "I'm glad you do."

"Thank you." Tom said.

Both, Harry and Serene, froze the moment those words left his mouth.

Tom wondered why.

"Wh-what's wrong?"

Slowly, Harry asked, "You can speak to snakes, Tom?"

"Yes, I can. Why,  what's wrong with it? You can speak it too."

Exhaling, Harry answered, "Tom, only a Parselmouth can talk to snakes. It's really rare bloodline gift. There is only one known house in Britain, who are known to speak Parseltongue."

"Wh-what!?!"

His mind was spinning. He had long ago accepted the fact that he was a muggleborn. That he had no family, muggle or wizard.

"Wait! You mean we're related!?!"
Incest was something he did not want. At all.

"Merlin, no!"

Tom was relieved by the fact.
"Then why did you say only one family. I know for a fact that the Peverells are from Britain."

Smirking, the man said, "Well, I did say known."
He then frowned and said seriously, "Though it is considered a dark trait, Tom. Parseltongue, that is. People frown upon it. Then again, people are stupid."

Tom felt cold inside.
"Which family's trait is it, Harry?"

Harry stared at him, and answered after a moment. "Slytherin."

"Is it a well-known fact?"  He asked, feeling colder all of a sudden.

"Yes."

Tom closed his eyes and exhaled. Dumbledore knew. 'He knew!'

"Tom, can I ask you something?"

He could make out the absence of the slight hissing sounds he had previously.  'He is speaking English.'

"Yes."

"Do you know what an Inheritance Test is?"

"A what?" He asked weakly. He felt tired, and done. 

Tom heard a sharp intake of breath. Looking up, he saw that Harry looked pale.

"You don't?" His voice was incredulous and faint.

"No?"

Harry sat beside him, held his hand and asked, "Tom, have you been inside Gringotts? Like ever?"

"No," he replied, furrowing his eyebrows, "I thought only purebloods and wealthy halfbloods went in there."

In a controlled voice, he asked him, "Tell me, Tom. Who the hell did introduce you to the wizarding world? Who was that piece of shit?"
He was hissing at the end.

Tom noticed that his eyes flashed green once again. He was too bewildered to ask about it.

"Dumbledore." His own voice held barely contained rage.

Dumbledore. That man knew that Tom was related to Slytherin. And that old coot denied him his own home. 'He'll pay for it.' Tom vowed to himself.

Tom looked at Harry and froze.

His eyes were glowing. They were green. Poisonous green.

He was said to have demonic eyes. Poisonous green eyes. Just like the killing curse.

Chapter Text

It seemed that Harry did not notice it.

His eyes were furious. They seemed to hold the power to burn the entirety of Hogwarts and Hogsmeade.

Tom gulped and stayed silent. He did not know what to do. Was he supposed to go to the Headmaster to tell him that one of his staff members was none other than Dark Lord Hades himself?

Or should he stay quiet and not tell anyone. Should he confront Harry? Is he even Hadrian Peverell? Or was that man killed and this was an imposter. A disguised Dark Lord? Or is he the Dark Lord?
'Hadrian Peverell, the son of the Vanquisher of Grindelwald, a Dark Lord himself?' The irony of it made him want to cry and laugh at the same time.

His mind was spinning. He did not know what to do.

Tom then remembered Harry's words from one of his lessons.

"If you are stuck in a situation where you  don't  know what to do. Retreat. Stand back, be quiet  and  clear you r  mind . Then think. Not many things  are  what they  seem  to be. Every situation has more than one way out.  Thinking  rationally is really important."

Yes, paying attention during lessons was always useful. Heeding to those words, Tom remained silent.

Harry was still too furious to notice his silence and inner panic.

Gathering his courage, he said, "H-harry. I know that you're furious with Dumbledore. I'm too. Maybe we I should go back to the dorms? You know- to let off some steam and all that."
Tom knew whatever he was suggesting was hippogriff dung, but he was too scared to care.

It seemed that Harry was also too consumed in his anger to notice. He simply hissed, "Yesss".

Tom quite literally ran away from Harry's quarters.

In his room, he sat on his bed and took a deep breath.
'Think rationally.'

He had a big decision to make.

His heart was beating so fast, Tom feared it'll come out of his body.
And he was scared.
'What will happen when Harry finds out that I knows about his identity?' And seriously, a Dark Lord!? Why couldn't Harry have been something simpler, like a secret prince or even the long-lost family member of some ancient god or something? Why was his life so complicated?

Tom knew that any sane person would call the authorities. Harry was distracted. Arresting a distracted Dark Lord would be easy. Maybe.

But should he? Sure, Harry might be a very, very dangerous Dark Lord, but he was always so nice to Tom. And he knew that it wasn't an act. He could feel the man's magic. It was always happy and peaceful whenever they were together.

'But he killed people!', a part of his mind screamed.

Sure, he killed people. But wasn't Tom going to do the same?

Horcruxes.

Tom was planning to make one this year.

He knew that he was only one breath away from being killed in the Muggle world. He hated to admit it, but he was always scared to go there every summer. He couldn't even use magic to defend himself. Almost everyone he knew there would gladly kill him. Maria could not always save him.
Even in the Wizarding World he wasn't safe. Dumbledore and his followers would love to kill him on the spot. Even the purebloods.

He was ready to do anything for survival. Murder too. So why did he care if Harry did that too?

He had no friends. He was always so utterly alone. But that was before Harry.

Harry provided him with safety and companionship. Affection. A friend. They couldn't be called as lovers, not yet. But maybe one day.

So, Tom couldn't even dream of losing it.

Making his mind, he thought, 'I'll not judge him on something I would do too. No.'

But what to do next?

Should he confront Harry or not?

'Hey! I know you're a murdering Dark Lord, Harry. Cool! You know what? I don't care. But please don't kill me because I know your secret.' It didn't sound like a good confrontation. No, it was terrible.

Again, a part of him was really hurt and angry by the fact that Harry did not trust him completely. But his rational side said that it was justified. They knew each other only for less than five months. And only for one month in respect to their courtship.
So, of course, Harry wouldn't pour his heart out, his deepest, darkest secrets in just a month of knowing each other.

Tom would've done the same thing if he were in Harry's shoes.

So, he decided not to dwell upon that fact.

He fell asleep thinking about what to do.

And fearing he might not wake up tomorrow.

Harry went to him bedroom in his quarters, hissing murder.

He was furious.

Who did Albus-fucking-Dumbledore think he was!?! Poking his nose where it was not at all welcome!

" I'll  kill him!! Slowly, with a rusty  knife . Torture him so  bad  that  death  will feel  like  merc-"

He froze.

Poisonous green eyes were staring back at him.

He saw the murderous expression on his face. His eyes.

He remembered Tom's hasty retreat. His panic filled eyes. His frozen posture.

'He knows.'

His identity was threatened. His life. His Reapers. Everything.

It all depended on Tom.

A part of him wanted to slip inside the Slytherin dorms and eliminate the threat immediately, though he stopped himself. Tom, for all his masks and cunningness, was an open book. The boy loved him, and he himself was aware of that.

When he told the boy that he was interested in him, he meant it.

He knew he had to find a mate.

Meeting Tom was luck.

He wasn't in love with Tom, not yet.

But he'll give the Slytherin a chance, to see what he'd do. Knowing Tom, he'd be the one knocking at his door by tomorrow morning. But if he went to someone and spilled out his secret...

Harry knew he could easily escape from Hogwarts if it came down to it. But if it did happen, Harry would not spare him. As much as he adored Tom, if the Slytherin couldn't accept who he was, then he would leave him.

It hurt him, but he won't endanger his people for anyone or anything. Not even for his heart.

"Tom." He whispered wearily to himself. "You stupid parselmouth."

Harry wasn't in love with Tom, but he dearly wished that Tom would choose him.

Chapter Text

Tom woke up in the morning with a headache.
For a few moments, he was confused, but the memory of the discovery of the night before came back rushing into his mind.

He immediately groaned and flopped back into his bed. 'What to do?'

'I'm going to talk to him.'
Early morning mind doesn't overthink. A sleepy mind provides the most simple solutions.

With that, he got ready to meet Harry. It was 5:45 in the morning, so very, very few people were awake.

He once again stood in front of Harry's quarters door. Pacing. 'I'm mad. Definitely. Going to confront the Dark Lord alone.'

It opened on its own, which was kind of intimidating. He went inside. Harry wasn't seated in the classroom.

Tom went to the office. Harry wasn't there either.
'He knows. Maybe he's giving me a chance to run away. To behave as this never happened.'

Taking a deep breath, he went to the living room.

Harry was lounging on a single seat couch in front of the fireplace. It looked more like a throne than a couch right now. He looked more like a Dark Lord than Harry. His green eyes were watching Tom's every move.

Tom stood frozen at the doorway.

"Take a seat, Tom."

It was a command. Not a request. Tom took the offered seat. He understood he was speaking to the Dark Lord, not Harry.

"So you've decided not to tell anyone about me?" His tone was neutral, like his expression.

"No."

"Do you want to?"

Did he want to? "No."

The Dark Lord smiled. Tom could see a bit of Harry in him.

"Good."

"Would you've killed me if I did? Told someone. "

"Maybe. But if you had fought against me, I wouldn't have hesitated."

Tom nodded. It hurt, but he understood why. Of course, he would eliminate a threat as soon as possible.

"Tom, I understand that you are surprised by this revelation, but I need an answer. Are you willing to keep my identity a secret? Are you willing to join my side? I did not tell you any of this before because I was contemplating whether to trust you with this information or not. Yet, here we are now. So tell me, Tom Riddle, will you join my side. Pledge yourself to me?"

Tom was frozen in his seat. He knew that this would come. Join the Dark Lord or be killed. He looked at the man in front of him.

The Dark Lord was staring back at him indifferently.
Tom would've appreciated a bit of emotions, to make the decision easy. Whether Harry genuinely wanted him or not.

"Can I- Can I ask you something? Please?"

The Dark Lord nodded.

"This courtship. Did you offer it because you wanted me to join your side or..?" He trailed.

The man looked more serious now.
"I offered the courtship because I like you, Tom. But I'm a Dark Lord. The villain in everyone's story. I can't let my adoration for someone come in between my responsibilities. Especially when that said someone is against me. If you reject my offer, we will part our ways. I'll might decide not to kill you. But if you decide stand against me and go to Dippet or Dumbledore, I'll know, and you'll be dead even before you get up from that chair."

Ouch. Tom took a deep breath.
"And, what if I join?"

"I'll protect you with everything I am. I'll cherish you. Love you. Accept you. You'll be the prince of my empire. But only if you accept me as I am. Also remember, if you accept, you'll in constant danger. My enemies will want to hurt to get me. Or just for vengeance. Life as my partner will not be like a walk in a park. Also, understand, Tom, I'm not a good man. There are parts of me which will disgust you. Frighten you. Hurt you. Remeber, if you accept me now, I'll never let you go. "

Tom understood that Harry wanted him to choose wisely. He was being honest with him. Tom knew that there will be difficulties if he accepts this offer.

He looked at Harry. They both wanted acceptance. For who they were. The idea was tempting. So very tempting.

Taking a breath, he said, earnestly, "I'll join you. And I don't mind you being a Dark Lord. I promise I'll help you with everything I can."

Harry smiled at him. He accepted Tom.
"Thank you."

They looked at each other. Both of them were relieved that they had each other.

Harry then took a serious look on his face and said, "You have to take an Unbreakable Vow, Tom. To never reveal my identity or anyone associated with my Dark Lord persona to anyone, directly or indirectly, without my permission. To never reveal any of my secrets."

"I'll take it."

Nodding, Harry went to the fireplace and threw the floo powder in it. There was a ward around the fireplace to block the sounds and to prohibit anyone from crossing the wards without his permission.

Harry talked with someone for a few seconds and returned back to his seat.

A moment later, the fireplace roared and a figure emerged from it.

Draco Malfoy.

With a bow, the Malfoy Heir said,
"Good morning, my Lord."

"Good morning, Draco."

Turning towards him, Harry beckoned Tom to stand beside him.

The Slytherin did as he was told.

"Tom, this is Draco Malfoy and Draco, meet Tom Riddle."

Both nodded respectfully to each other.

Harry then explained to Draco about the Unbreakable Vow.

After he finished taking the vow, Draco bowed respectfully and went back, saying, "My Lord."

Both Harry and Tom were left alone in the room.

Harry startled Tom by holding his hands in his and then kissed his knuckles on both the hands.
Looking at him in his eyes, he said sincerely, "Thank you, Tom. I promise that you'll never regret this choice."

Tom was sure he was a blushing mess, but said, smiling, "And thank you, Harry, for accepting me."
It meant a lot to him. Tom never had met anyone in his life who accepted him. All of him.

They stayed like that for some time.

Then, Harry guided them towards a couch (it was bigger than the one he was sitting on previously) and sat down side-by-side.

Unfortunately, he let go of Tom's hands and addressed another pressing matter.

"Tom, we have some important things to talk about."

The Slytherin sighed, knowing what was coming, "The Inheritance Test thing?"

"Yes. It's a really important matter, Tom. The test shows us our family line, relatives, our parents and whether they are alive or not."

Tom looked down. It was a sensitive topic for him. Family. After coming here to Hogwarts, he lost his last hope at having a family, when he got to know that there is no one named 'Riddle' in the Wizarding World. But now here he was, seventeen years old, being told that he may have some family members here. A chance at a family.

It seemed that Harry somehow knew what he was thinking and said, "Hey. It's alright, Tom. If the tests show that you do have a family, no one is going to force you to stay with them. And remember, I'll always be there for you. You can even stay with me at my manor, this summer. No one will force you to do anything you don't like, Tom. I promise you. I'll always be by your side."

Tom felt touched at those words. No one had ever said those words to him. No one ever looked out for him.

He felt himself being pulled by Harry in the Professor's arm. He laid his head on the taller man's chest. He, for the first time, felt safe. Accepted.

Chapter Text

"How do I get this Inheritance Test done?" Tom asked.

Both, he and Harry were seated on a table in Harry's quarters and were having breakfast.

"It's a simple procedure. You go to Gringotts, they give you a paper, you put a few drops of blood on it and you get the results."

"Alright. And when am I doing it?"

"This Saturday. "

"What!?" Tom asked, shocked.

"It's a Hogsmeade Weekend." Harry said simply, eating a treacle tart.

"I know, but Gringotts is in Diagon Alley and we are not allowed to go outside the wards."

"Actually you can. If a family member or your partner wants to take you out, they can."

Tom was confused, "I haven't read it anywhere in Hogwarts: A History."

The Professor looked up from eating the tart and said, "Its written in the Code of Conduct. The book itself isn't well known, so many people don't know this. I can lend you my copy, if you want to read it."

"Oh. Yeah, sure. That would be lovely." He said, simply. "But wait, then we have to tell people about us."
Tom flushed slightly and added, "I mean, if you want to."

Harry looked fondly at him and said, "Of course I want to, my sweet snake."

Tom could say that he resembled a tomato.

Harry was sitting in the staff room.

They were supposed to give their monthly student report today.

Harry sighed. He hated this day. Mainly because it meant he had to talk to Dumbledore and try not to kill Snape on the spot.

Dippet came after a few minutes and started, "Good morning teachers. I hope you all had a great vacation. So, today we're here for the monthly report. Horace, will you like to start?"

With that, one-by-one, every teacher started their own report. Syllabus completed, homework, good student, mischievous ones and the ones facing any kind of problems.

Harry had noticed that Snape and Dumbledore were the most prejudiced teachers in the staff. Snape preferred Slytherins and Dumbledore preferred Gryffindor, both complaining about the other House. But both had one thing in common, their dislike for Tom.

Harry gripped his quill tightly whenever one of them said something bad about his little snake. 'Bigoted old asses', he thought, thinking about different ways to kill them. It always soothed him.

Finally his turn came, and he gave his report as thoroughly as he could.
He added at last, "I would also bring it to your attention, Armando, that one of our students, Miss Warren, a fourth year Ravenclaw, is dyslexic, and nobody in the staff knows about it. So, the girl has received no help from anyone, which is, frankly, very disappointing."

Before Dippet could answer, Snape drawled, "Peverell, just because of your incompetence for teaching, you should not distract us from ours. The girl is dim-witted. She hardly passes above a squib, but somehow still she's here. We should not pamper the brat, Peverell."

He thanked Merlin for giving him a friend like Hermione, who had introduced him to anger management practices when they fifteen. Or else, Snape might've had a very painful death in the next five seconds.

There  were many outraged exclamations of "Severus" from around the table. The Potions Professor always let his anger take the better of him whenever Harry was involved. This was a new low. Saying such a thing about a student will put Snape in a very precarious position.

Harry looked at Snape and gave him a hard look. "Severus, let's not talk about incompetency in teaching. And for the remark about Miss Warren, unlike you, I pay attention to all my students equally and do my duty as a teacher very seriously. If one of our students has a problem, we should do everything in our power to help them. About pampering a student, helping them does not equal to pampering. And I don't think any teacher should complain about a student's magical ability. Do you even know the students who are good at Potions from Houses other than Slytherin, or might I add, from the said House too?"

Harry loathed the man for the way he treated Tom. 

Snape looked like he was going to burst, from the angry flush on his face.

Nobody had seen Snape look so angry.

Before the argument could escalate, Dippet intervened, "That's enough. Severus, I'm absolutely disgusted by your words for Miss Warren. You know, everyone here is aware about yours and Albus' biases for your houses, but there are lines which you should not cross. Commenting about a child's magical ability and health are two of them." The man said sternly to Snape.

The Potions Professor looked embarrassed and furious. "I know", he hissed.

The Headmaster then turned to Harry and asked, "How do you know about this, Hadrian?"

Relaxing his grip on the quill, Harry answered, "I observed Miss Warren's difficulty in reading. She's always able to perform the spells and charms taught in class. I also noticed that she tries not to submit her assignments as much as possible. So, I asked her about it. At first, she tried to dodge the question. But at the end, she relented. She told me about not being able to read. Simply talking to the students with respect does wonders." He said the last word looking directly at Snape.

Dippet nodded thoughtfully.
After some moments, he asked, "What do you suggest we do, Hadrian?"

Many teachers looked surprised at that. Dippet not asking Dumbledore first was new. Harry knew that the Headmaster actually cared for the students but trusted the old coot a bit too much. Dumbledore, being the master manipulator he was, abused that power and trust.

"Unfortunately, we don't have any counsellors in Magical Britain. But if you permit, I can contact some of my acquaintances in the States and help Miss Warren."

Dippet looked like he was ready to allow it, when Dumbledore said, "I don't think that's necessary, my dear boy. I know that the muggle world has counsellors to help dyslexic people. Miss Warren is a muggleborn. I think she'll be more comfortable with the muggle counselor."

Dippet frowned at the man.

"I, on the other hand, think that Miss Warren should seek help in the Wizarding World, Albus. Yes the girl is a muggleborn, but she is also a witch, and magical counselor will be of more help. She'll have to constantly make up something if she's in the muggle world, and I don't think a young student should be burdened with that. And her father is a rich muggle, she said so herself. I don't think he'll mind a few visits to America at all." Harry said.

Before Dumbledore could argue more, Dippet said, "I think that's a wonderful idea, Hadrian. I permit you to go through Miss Warren's school records for her parent's address. And thank you for bringing this to our attention", he said gratefully.

Harry smiled and nodded at the Headmaster.

Dumbledore looked troubled. Dippet did not even ask for the old man's opinion in the matter. Harry smirked internally. One point to Harry, zero to Dumbledore. 

Harry saw the gratefulness and trust shining in the Headmaster's eyes, whenever he looked at him. And the disappointment and slight suspicion, whenever he glanced at Dumbledore.

Dumbledore lost Dippet's unwavering trust in him.

The first pillar of Dumbledore's power was destroyed.

Chapter Text

Soon after that the meeting was over and the teachers started to leave, Dumbledore and Snape being the first ones, probably to let out their anger on some poor soul they encountered on their way back.

Harry stayed behind. He knew that Dippet always was the last person to leave in case some professor wanted to talk to him in private.

As soon as the last person left, Harry checked for any listening charms. Satisfied that there were none, he said, "Armando, I have one more thing to say."

"Go ahead, Hadrian." The Headmaster said, smiling. Armando could say that he liked the new Professor. In spite of his young age, he was a good teacher. Armando had heard from many students and parents about how they liked Professor Peverell. The boy was passionate about the subject he taught. And now that the Professor had volunteered to help Miss Warren, it only cemented his respect for the man.

"Actually, this is kind of personal", Harry said, with a bashful look on his face.

"Oh. Whatever it is, you don't have to worry." The Headmaster said, concerned.

"No, it's not that bad, but it isn't either- It's just.... I'm in a courtship." He said looking at his shoes.

Dippet looked surprised at first but then, a genuine smile bloomed on his face. "That's great news, Hadrian. I'm really happy for you. Congratulations."

Harry smiled thankfully at the man but then looked nervous after some moments.

Dippet, once again looking concerned and confused, asked, "What is the matter, Hadrian? This- it's a really good thing. Why do you look so tense?"

Biting his lips, Harry looked around and said, "You won't like it. For the matter, no one at Hogwarts will."

Now the Headmaster looked more worried and looked at Harry. After a moment, he understood what the problem was.
"It's a student. Isn't it?" His voice still held the concern, but now, his voice had changed slightly. 

"Yes", he breathed out.

The Headmaster looked troubled for some seconds. Shaking his head, he asked, "I hope the student knows what they are doing."

Harry looked genuinely offended and exclaimed, "Of course they do! I would never force someone in an unwilling courtship!" He maybe a Dark Lord, but there are some lines he won't dare cross. One being forcing himself on someone.

Dippet looked shocked for a second, but started shaking his head vigorously and said, "I'm sorry. I did not mean to offend you. I'm just worried about the students. They are young and they just do things impulsively without thinking of it's consequences."

Pushing his hair away from his eyes, Harry said, "Yes, I understand. And I can assure you my partner is intelligent enough to know that he should enter a courtship wisely."

Dippet looked surprised and asked, "And may I know who this 'he' is?"

Harry smiled fondly and said, "Tom Riddle."

Dippet looked shocked at the name. "Mr. Riddle?"

Harry smirked slightly at the shock in the Headmaster's voice and confirmed, "Yes, Tom Riddle."

Dippet looked at Harry for some moments, then smiled slightly and said, "I can say that I wasn't expecting this, but I know Mr. Riddle is a smart boy. Congratulations, to both of you."

Dipping his head slightly, Harry said, "Thank you, Armando. And I want to inform you that I'll be taking Tom out on the Hogsmeade Weekend with me."

Dippet nodded and said, "Alright. Have a nice date."

They both chuckled and Harry was nearly out of the door when Dippet said, "I know you're a good person, Hadrian. But please, treat Tom well."

The Defence Professor knew that the Headmaster meant well and responded, "I promise I will. And please don't tell anyone about it as of now. We're keeping it a secret for some time."

After Dippet's confirmation, Harry left the staff room.

The Hogsmeade Weekend came soon.

Tom was waiting near the Entrance Door of Hogwarts for Harry. The said man had the duty to overlook the students till the village's border. Luckily, Dippet had not assigned the duty of overlooking the students for the whole day. Instead, Snape was given that job. Tom would advise Harry to check his food before eating it for a few months from now on.

After several minutes, he heard some footsteps in his direction.

It was Harry.

The man always took away his breath, everytime Tom saw him.

The Professor was wearing rather nice looking bluish-black and silver robes. They matched his (glamoured?) blue eyes. 'I should ask how he changes his eye colour.'

Harry reached him, took Tom's hand in his and kissed his knuckles.

Tom thought that he might never not blush when the man did so.

"Uh... Hello, Harry."

"Hello, my little snake", Harry said fondly, though there was a hint of a smirk playing on his face.
"You look beautiful as always."

Tom flushed even more at that. Though Harry said it everyday, the Slytherin never got used to it.

Today, he wore a green and gold colored robes, which Harry gifted him. It was way too different from his usual school uniform. And it felt nice, to wear something other than the school robes.
"You too."

Harry offered his hand for apparition. Even though Tom knew how to apparate, he did not have his license. Andd Harry, for being a Dark Lord, did not let him break the law. 

He took the offered hand and the next moment, they were both standing in an alley.

When he turned his questioning stare towards Harry, the man said, "Well, no one is allowed to apparate inside Gringotts, so here we are."

They walked the small distance towards Gringotts. The white and gold building was intimidating, as always.

Tom was feeling a bit uncomfortable when they walked inside. He always thought that this place was for purebloods and wealthy halfbloods, not for lowly muggleborns like him. But he wasn't that now.

As soon as they entered inside a huge lobby, every eye turned towards them. Of course, everyone recognized Harry, who smiled charmingly at the people, but did not spare more than a glance at anyone.

Tom knew what Harry was doing. The Professor did not care one knut for anyone he did not like. But these people adored Harry. They all wanted to know him, wanted him to favour them, wanted his attention, and Harry used that in his favour. One charming smile and a glance, and they fell in love with him.

Then their eyes turned towards Tom, who was walking with Harry, arm-in-arm. A few looked confused. Some of those who had an inkling of what he might be to Harry, seeing the matching rings, looked confused, some jealous, some happy and some downright hateful.

When Harry noticed the looks, he tightened his grip on Tom and hurried towards the Teller.

"How can I help you, Lord Peverell?" The goblin asked.

"Mr. Riddle here wants to have an Inheritance Test, Teller Kling" Harry said in a low voice.

The goblin looked surprised at that and turned his shrewd eyes at Tom.

The Slytherin held his gaze with the intimidating and ancient looking goblin.

After some moments, the Teller turned back to look at Harry, saying something in Gobbledygook to another goblin and said, "Lord Peverell, please follow Vrulk to the office."

With that, both he and Harry started following the other goblin.

Though behind them, the news of Hadrian Peverell with another man in his arms, spread like wildfire among the people.

Chapter Text

When the trio reached an ornate door, the goblin knocked it.
Something was yelled in Gobbledygook from someone inside and then Vrulk let them in.

Inside the office, there was an elderly goblin seated behind a decorative desk. Vrulk looked at them and said, "Lord Peverell, Mr.Riddle, this is Griphook." With that, he left the office.

Harry nodded at Griphook and Tom mimicked his actions.

The Professor then said, "Griphook, this is Tom Riddle, my partner. He wants to have an Inheritance Test."

Griphook looked confused but nodded and took out some parchments from his desk.

Looking at him, the goblin said, "Mr. Riddle, you need to put three-drops of your blood on this parchment. It will show you the results." The goblin offered him a dagger. It was quite exquisite.

Tom looked at Harry. The other man nodded at him.

The Slytherin went ahead, made a small cut on his finger and let his blood drip on the empty parchment. When the third drop touched the parchment, words started forming on it. Tom observed the parchment with amazement and apprehension.

When the parchment was filled, the three of them read it.

Inheritance Test Results

Gringotts, Diagon Alley, London

Name :  Tom Marvolo Riddle

Age: 17

Blood-status : Half-blood

Mother : Merope Marvolo Gaunt (dead)

Father : Tom Thomas Riddle (alive)

Possible Guardians :

Tom Thomas Riddle (father) (Muggle)

Thomas Winston Riddle (paternal grandfather) (Muggle)

Mary Thomas Riddle (paternal grandmother) (Muggle)

Marvolo Gormlaith Gaunt (maternal grandfather ) (imprisoned)

Morfin Marvolo Gaunt (maternal uncle) (imprisoned)

Albus Percival Wulfric Brian Dumbledore (chosen by the Headmaster of Hogwarts- Armando  Dippet )

Hadrian James Peverell (courtship/distant relation)

Heirships and Lordships :

Ancient and Noble House of Slytherin
(Age - 17)

Ancient and Noble House of Peverell
(Heirship) (Current Lord - Hadrian Peverell)

Tom stared at the results. His heart was beating really fast. He also felt a burning behind his eyes. 'My father is alive. He was alive this whole time and never looked for me.'
Tom was always told that he was abandoned by his parents. But to know this was more painful. He felt numb. This was all too much. Everyone except his mother was alive, but not one did step forward to find him. 

He heard Harry say something to the goblin. Griphook then left the office.

He felt a light touch on his shoulder and saw Harry looking at him, concerned. Holding back his tears, he said jokingly, "Looks like we are related, albeit distantly."

Harry smiled at him and pulled Tom towards him, hugging him tightly.

Tom cried silently in his chest, thinking about how different his life would be if his father had looked out for him. 'Is that man even a decent person?' He would've had a nice life. Would've been treated as a person.

Harry held him close until his tears stopped.

Leaning back, he said quietly, "S-sorry for that and, um, ruining your clothes."

The man only shook his head. Smiling slightly, he brushed the tears on his cheeks and said, "I don't care about the clothes, Tom. I care about you. I understand all this is huge, so I'll do anything to help you, my dear."

Tom smiled gratefully at the man and said, "Thank you so much, Harry", and kissed the other man on his cheek.

This was the second time he saw the man blush.

They smiled at each other goofily.

Harry stroked his cheek the last time and leaned back.
"Tom, there is something I want to tell you once we head back." He said in a serious tone.

Tom nodded and said, "Okay. Um, I want to ask you something."

"Do ask."

"Why am I your heir?"

"Well, as you said earlier, it seems like we're related, albeit distantly. Since we are the last two people with the Peverell blood, I, coming from the direct bloodline, am the Lord, and maybe years ago a Peverell married a Slytherin and took their name, making you the heir." Harry spoke in his 'Professor-voice'. (Tom loved it secretly)

"Does it means that it has nothing to do with age?"

Shaking his head, Harry said, "No. I could've been younger than you but still get the Lordship. Like I'm the Gryffindor Lord now, but it is from some maternal side. If there was someone else who had like a direct relation to Gyffindors, in spite of their age, they would get the Lordship."

Tom nodded. "And, your name- it would've showed up in my test even if we were not in a courtship right?"

"No."

"Oh... did my name come up in yours?" 

Harry shook his head quickly. "No. We're too distantly related to be counted as cousins or anything. I had my cousin's name come up in mine. He was my mother's nephew. But my name coming up in yours... it has to be because of this courtship. I mean, half of the Britain is related to each other. If they showed every blood-relation, over a hundreds of people would have my name."

"Hmm." It made sense. And it was practical too. But if only-

Would Harry have reached out to him if he'd known he had an heir somewhere out there, probably in some muggle orphanage?

Tom looked up at Harry. The man looked concerned for him, but there was this warmth in him. This cold, cold man, who killed Merlin knows how many people, was a freaking Dark Lord, who flirted with him shamelesssly in the classroom when nobody was looking, had a batch of baked cookies everyday in his room, made him laugh and smile and swoon. Tom did not want to change this. If things had played back differently all those years ago, he might not have this today. 

He smiled at Harry and held his hand. They sat in silence for a while. 

Then a thought came in his mind, making him red all over.

Harry looked confused and asked, "What's it, my sweet?"

The Slytherin blushed even more at the endearment. He shook his head, killing the question in his mind. It was embarrassing.

The Professor frowned and said, "Tom, dear, if you won't tell me what the problem is, how will I help you?"

Harry wasn't about to let this go, was he?

Looking down, Tom asked, "You know, I don't think that a... couple, married, both partners, you know- both can't be like, a Lord and other the Heir, can they?."
His face was flaming red. Yes, they were in a courtship, but that did not mean they will certainly marry. Even now, he still feared that the other will change his mind and break the courtship.

Harry blinked and was then holding Tom's face in his hands before he could even blink. 

The Professor licked his own lips, seemingly in deep thought, and Tom's eyes followed the movements.
'Will he actually kiss me here, in Gringotts!?'

(They were in the courtship for two months, but still hadn't kissed. Merlin, Tom wanted to. But when he asked about it, shyly, to the man, the Professor smirked and said, "I want it to be special.")

But Harry did not kiss him. He started speaking instead.
"Tom, my sweet, I don't generally like people. Merlin knows I hate most on sight. But those I do, I'll never leave them, you know. And you Tom, you are the first person I like this much. So please understand, I won't back out from this courtship."

Tom smiled shyly at the man.

"And about the Heirship, you can accept it now since we aren't married yet, so magic allows it, you don't have to worry about that." There was something in his eyes, which Tom could not understand.

After some minutes, they called Griphook back.
Tom accepted the Slytherin Lordship and the Peverell Heirship.

Unfortunately for him, the Slytherin wealth was squandered by the Gaunts. Only the books remained in the vaults, which Tom was thankful for.

On Harry's insistence, he got the Peverell Heir vault, which had a lot money and was deposited with 500 galleons per month from the family vault. He had tried to refuse it, but one thing about Harry was that the man did whatever he wanted. Tom could hardly get two words out of his mouth before he accepted it.

Though one fact was absolutely true about Hadrian Peverell. The man was filthy rich. It made him feel less weird about taking money from the man.

Then Harry proceeded to tell him about which businesses to invest in, promising to teach him about business later and discussed about clearing the loans and bills of the Slytherin name. Tom was intelligent, and he knew it, but the whole business talk went over his head.

After sitting in the room for three hours, the duo left the office and followed Vrulk, who was called again, towards the main hall.

As soon as they went outside Gringotts, every eye turned towards them, this time especially Tom, with one question in it.

'Who is the boy in a courtship with Hadrian Peverell!?'

Chapter Text

There were many people in the crowd near Gringotts, though no one tried to approach them, except for one.

A woman, having blond hair set in elaborate curls, jewelled spectacles, two-inches long nails painted in crimson and a rather forced smile, approached them.

Tom noticed Harry's slight frown from the corner of his eyes. The Professor whispered to him, "Tom, when the woman asks you anything, don't say a word."

Before Tom could respond, the woman reached them.

"Lord Peverell, how nice to meet you."

"It's good to see you again, Miss Skeeter", Harry said, sounding anything but happy.

Tom realized who the woman was.

Rita Skeeter.

She was rather famous for writing fake tales and making money from it. And for being fired from the Daily Prophet for some reason.

"Hmm," she turned towards him and asked, "and may I know who you are, young man?"

Tom froze. Yes, he knew that being in a relationship with Harry will make him a known figure, but this was too sudden. Tom wanted to make a name for himself, but he did not want Rita Skeeter, of all people, to write the first article about him.

Fortunately, Harry answered for him, "This is my partner, Tom Riddle." There was fondness in his voice when he said the Slytherins name.

"Oh my, this is a great news! Congratulations, Lord Peverell."

"Thank you."

"May I speak to Mr. Riddle? Privately, if possible."
Her voice suggested that she did not wish to have a conversation with him, but to intimidate him.

"Now now, Miss Skeeter, we don't want a repeat of what happened four years ago, do we?"

Tom saw anger flash in Skeeter's eyes.

Before she could say more, Harry said, "It was good talking to you, Miss Skeeter. But we have places to be."

With that, Harry pulled them away from the crowd, back to the alley they had apparated in.

"That stupid bug." He murmured.

"What happened four years ago?" Tom asked curiously.

"She wrote an article about me. I didn't like it, so I threatened Daily Prophet to either fire her or they'll lose their license, you know, slander of a minor. They chose the first option."

"Oh. Where are we going?" Tom asked, breathlessly.

Smirking, the Professor said, "Well, I did say to Dippet that I'm going to take you on a date. Hold tight."

With that, they disappeared from Diagon Alley.

Tom took a deep breath as soon as they reached wherever they were.
Harry's hand behind his back was the only thing keeping him from falling down on the ground. 'No wonder people generally don't like apparating.'

He looked up and his breath caught in his throat.

They were both almost face-to-face. Tom, in spite of being tall for his age, reached just above Harry's chin.

The man stared in at him in his eyes for a long moment and tucked some strands of Tom's hair behind his ears.
"Here we are, Tom."
With that, he leaned back.

Tom flushed and looked around.

They were standing in front of an expensive-looking restaurant.

When he looked at Harry, the other man started talking, "Like I said before, this is a date. I mean if you want."

Tom smiled brightly at the man and said, "Of course I will like that!"

Harry offered his arm to him, smiled mischievously at him and said, "Well, Mr. Riddle, or should Lord Slytherin, this is our first date and your first public appearance. So, shall we?"

The Slytherin smiled at him and took the offered hand, "Yes, Lord Peverell."

They went inside.

Again, every eye turned towards them.

A man, who Tom assumed was the owner, by his looks, approached them.

"Lord Peverell! It's an honor! Good afternoon, sir!"

"Good afternoon Mr. Cole."

The man then turned to him. There was a flash of recognition and curiosity in his eyes.

'News travels fast', Tom thought.

"And who might be this young man?"

Tom lifted his chin and answered, "Tom Riddle, Lord Slytherin."

Mr. Cole looked stumped.

Harry smiled sharply and said, "Yes. And I guess this is where you show us a table, Mr. Cole."

The man blinked and said, "Oh. Yes! Please follow me Lord Peverell and Lord S-Slytherin." He then hurriedly took them through a door.

The place was beautiful.

It was an open space with a single table, for two people, and was decorated gorgeously. There were flowers, drapes and candles. Soft music was playing in the background.

Harry went forward and pulled a chair.

At Tom's questioning look, he said, "For you."

Tom took the seat, looking flustered.

He had his reasons.

This was a first for Tom. For many things.
First date. First time eating in a restaurant (that too an expensive one). First time wearing nice clothes. First time having a wizarding title.

Harry smiled a bit nervously and asked, "I hope you like this, Tom?"

"Oh yes. I love it." He smiled at the man.

He knew that this was new for the other man too. Dating, that is.

A man approached them and took their order.
(Harry did most of it, since he knew more about it)

After the man left, Harry held Tom's  hands in his own and said, "Tom, I know you have many questions. There are wards around this place. So, you can ask now, it's safe."

"How do you know that?"

Smirking, the man said, "You have a habit of tapping your feet whenever you want to ask something."

Tom looked surprised at the man. He himself, had never noticed this, let alone expecting Harry to do so. The man really knew how to be sweet.

Smiling bashfully at him, Tom said, "Yes, I do."

Harry tilted his head, motioning him to speak.

"Your eyes. How do you, you know- change their color?"

Harry leaned back and said, "Hmm. Do you know who my godfather is?"

"Yes. Sirius Black."

"Yes. It is an old tradition in the old families, it's a ritual actually, for the chosen godfather or godmother, only one of them, to give their blood to their godchild. It's a very old ritual, so no one does it nowadays. I think only Sirius' family did it back then. So, my godfather gave me his blood. Now, the Blacks are known for having metamophormagus blood in the family. Though, since it's a bloodline trait, I couldn't exactly get it completely, so I got it partially. It's the reason why I can change my eye and hair color."

"You can change your hair color!?"

In response, Harry changed his hair color to bright blue.

Tom laughed delightedly. Magic never ceased to amaze him.

"It's amazing! And you look really good!"

Smiling, Harry said, "Thank you, my sweet."

"How does Dumbledore not know this?" He asked, curious. "He was close with your parents."

"I think my parents did not tell him. You know, my father and his friends were well-known pranksters. I think they wanted to keep it a secret, you know, for the element of surprise." He said winking.

"I also think that when Dumbledore took me away from St. Mungo's, when I was one, I was asleep the whole time. And the man never saw me before. So he never had the chance to see my real eye color."

"So your eyes are really green?"

"Yes."

"Wait! Dumbledore took you when you were one?" Tom was horrified by the prospect. The man was manipulative. To think what he'd do to a small child!

Looking away, Harry said, "It's a story for another time, Tom." There was pain and anger, which Tom knew was directed towards Dumbledore, in his voice.

"Alright." Tom said sincerely.

After that, they moved on to lighter topics.

Harry changed his hair back to normal just before the waiter came.

The food was absolutely delicious.

Tom had never tasted such good food in his life. Not even at Hogwarts. No wonder his housemates always complained about the food at Hogwarts!

After they finished their food, they both left the restaurant and walked outside for a while.

Harry took him to a magical park then.
They spent most of their afternoon there.

They then went to a cafe and had some snacks and coffee.

They then went to different magical shops in London (there were surprisingly many) and bought books and other stuff.

Everywhere they went, whispers and eyes followed them.

After a while, Tom learned to ignore it.

The whole time, Harry relentlessly flirted with him and made Tom blush.
Tom too did it a few times.

(At first, the man looked surprised, but after that, he just responded with equal teasing and suggestive eyes.)

They also visited another restaurant and had dinner.

A few minutes before nine, Harry apparated them back to Hogwarts, as he had promised Dippet.

Tom could say that it was the best day of his life. He felt like he was on cloud nine.

As they made to part their ways, Tom surprised Harry, and himself too, by kissing the man on his cheeks.

Harry smiled gently at him and kissed him on his forehead.

"Good night, my sweet snake."

"Good night, handsome."

They looked at each other in their eyes and parted their ways, both feeling grateful to meet the other.

They both knew that they'll cherish this day their whole life.

Chapter Text

Both Harry and Tom had discussed what they were going to tell everyone the next day. How to handle the students and all.

But Tom was nervous.

It was the reason why he left the dorms at 5:45 in the morning, to go to Harry's room.

Harry, being the best person in the world (for Tom), was already seated in the classroom when Tom entered.

"Good morning, Tom."

"Good morning, Harry. How did you know...?"

"That you'll come here? I think I know you well enough by now." He said, smiling softly at Tom.

Tom felt his heart warm at that.

They spent the rest of their time in the his room. They discussed over what they'll say when the newspaper comes out.

When Tom disclosed his apprehension about the students reaction, Harry told him, "Tom, if any student says anything nasty about you or tries to bully you, you know what,  hex them. I will surely help you with that, but remember, it'll make people think you're weak, which you're not. You have to show them that you can handle them. That you're more powerful. That you're superior. The Slytherin title will help you a bit, but you've to build your name yourself. The people, they all will wait take every opportunity to scorn you. They are fickle. One day, they'll love you and next day, you're evil. They'll try to be close with you, pretend that they care, but keep them away, or they will stab you in the back."

His eyes were distant. It hit Tom that the man was speaking from personal experience. Yes, Harry had fame even before he went to Ilvermony, but he had built his own reputation.

He entwined their fingers, which brought Harry back from his thoughts, and said, "Okay. I'll hex them. And I understand what you're saying." Grinning, he added, "But if I get detention, make sure it's with you."

Harry laughed and said, "Of course, darling."

They left Harry's room and went to the Great Hall just before the newspaper would arrive. They had breakfast in the Professor's room, knowing very well they'll not get any time to eat in the Hall. At the entrance, Harry squeezed his shoulder and said, "Relax. It'll be alright." With that, they went in, Harry to the Teacher's table and Tom to the Slytherin table.

Everything was fine, until one blonde opened their mouth.

"Look, the Mudblood is late today. What were you doing, Mudblood? Licking the teacher's feet like the dog you are?" Malfoy said.

His cronies around him laughed.

Anger took over him. He was the one with the blood of the noble Slytherin! And to think that these little brats insult his blood!

Looking at Malfoy in his eyes, he said coldly, "You should take care of who you offend, Malfoy. Your arrogance might leave you on the wrong end of someone's wand."

The group looked stunned by his words. Yes, he had many times answered back or got back to them. But it was always done subtly. Not in front of so many students. Never in the Great Hall.

Malfoy spat, "What will you do, Mudblood?"

The noise of the incoming owls was heard.

Tom only smirked at Malfoy and took his seat.

After Malfoy's taunts, the nervousness left his body. He wanted to show these people who was more worthy. Show them that he was above them.

He looked at Harry. The man looked gleeful.

'Of course, the Dark Lord likes chaos.', Tom thought, smiling in the direction of the man.

Harry looked at him and winked.

"WHAT THE HELL!?!" Someone in Gryffindor exclaimed loudly.

Every eye turned to the newspaper.

BREAKING NEWS!!

HADRIAN PEVERELL IN A COURTSHIP?

Yes readers,  you've  read that right .

Hadrian Peverell, Lord of the Ancient and Noble House of Peverell, son of the Vanquisher of Lord Grindelwald, is indeed in a courtship.

Hadrian James Peverell is a well-known person in the wizarding world. Not only  because  of his parents, but also his achievements.

Lord Peverell is the youngest ever Lord of a Noble House. Also, was the youngest seeker ever at the age of eleven. He is also known for being the student with the highest ever grades in the OWLS and NEWT and for being the star-student of Ilvermorny. Also, he is well known for having masteries in five different branches of magic.

Lord Peverell is currently working as the Defence Against the Dark Arts Professor at Hogwarts. Though why he chose a professor's job over every other offer, it is a question that plagues everyone's mind.

Yesterday, in the afternoon, the Lord was seen outside Gringotts with another wizard. At first, the identity of the  young  wizard was unknown.

They were seen wearing matching rings, from which  many  concluded that both the individuals were in a courtship.

A large crowd was gathered outside Gringotts when the wizards had left the building. Rita Skeeter, a former Daily Prophet journalist,  was  the one to  confront  the pair.

There, Lord Peverell had revealed  that  he was in a courtship with the other wizard, who he introduced as Tom Riddle.

A few hours later, some people contacted Daily Prophet, with  the  whereabouts of the two wizards.

The  couple  had  gone to Il Celestino, an well-known Italian restaurant in London.

Darius  Cole, the owner of the restaurant, had revealed that the  younger  wizard had introduced himself as Lord Slytherin.

Yes  readers ,  you've  read  correctly !

It is true. Yesterday, the Ministry received a call from Gringotts that the title of Lord Slytherin was taken.

The pair were then sighted at many different shops across London.

From what  we've  gathered, Tom Riddle  is  a sixth year Slytherin  student . No other information has  been  found about him.

It is rather ironic that Lord Peverell, who is also  the  Lord Gryffindor, and Lord Slytherin are in a courtship, where the students of the two  houses  are known  to  hate each other.

We, at Daily Prophet, congratulate Lord Peverell and Lord Slytherin on their courtship  and  hope that the two  wizards  have a prosperous  and  peaceful life ahead.

-Natasha Evans

There was one more article, in some other newspaper, written by Skeeter.
It stressed more on the fact that Harry was dating a wizard younger than him, how Tom was a student. A child. The article also described Tom as "an arrogant, rude child, too young to be a Lord". It was eerily similar to the first article written by Skeeter about Harry. Luckily, no one was paying much attention to it. Tom knew, this article might be Skeeter's last work.

After reading the newspaper, every eye turned towards either him or Harry.

Harry looked like he was trying to stop himself from outright cackling.

Tom looked at the students indifferently.

They had various emotions on their faces. Incredulous. Disbelief. Awe. Confusion. Happiness. Outrage. Jealousy.

He also saw the pale faces of the Slytherins.

Slowly, he turned his gaze towards Dumbledore.

The man was looking at him and looked furious.

Tom smirked slightly at the man.

One point to Tom, zero to Dumbledore.

Then the chaos started.

Chapter Text

Students from every table started yelling and shouting questions.

Nobody could hear a thing in the pandemonium.

"This is a lie-"

"I CAN'T BELIEVE TH-"

"TOM RIDD-"

"A SLIMY SNAK-"

"A Mudblood-"

"CONGRATULATIO-"

"Lord Slytheri-"

"NOOOOOO-"

The teachers tried to control the students, but to no avail.

Tom looked calmly at them, not at all bothered by their words. (Expect the congratulations, he smiled in the direction of the one who said that.)

Dippet, having enough, stood up and yelled, "SILENCE!"

The students did not shut up.

Tom had never seen the Headmaster look so angry. Several other teachers tried to shut down the chaos, but nobody just listen. 

Finally, it was Harry who yelled, "EVERYBODY, SHUT THE FUCK UP!"

There was silence. Everyone was staring at him, wide-eyed, in disbelief.
(Tom was one of them too)

Harry cleared his throat and said, "Pardon me, for my language." Then he sternly added, "Is this how the students at Hogwarts react to a courtship news? Yelling and shouting? Screaming from across the room?"

At least the students had the decency to look ashamed.

"This courtship is a private matter, so I don't want even a single student poking their noses in Tom's and my business." Then he threatened, "And even if one of you even thinks about hurting Tom, remember, detention will be the least of your worries. And I'll tell you this only once. I'm Lord Gryffindor and Tom is Lord Slytherin. If you think the school board or someone else will protect you, welcome to the real world. Bother us, or harm us, you will be expelled."

Silence followed his declaration.

Tom could not believe that Harry actually threatened everyone in the Great Hall.

Dippet coughed slightly and said, "Thank you, Hadrian, for silencing the students. And students, I know that you are surprised by the revelations, but that does not give you the right to cause such chaos. And I strictly order you, do not bully either Mr. Riddle or Professor Peverell, by actions or words. Respect their decision. And please have your breakfast fast, you have classes in fifteen minutes. Thank you."

With that, the Headmaster sat down, and the students started whispering.

Even if their voices were low, Tom could still hear their displeasure and scorn.

The Slyherins kept shooting uncertain glances at him. No doubt, planning a confrontation.

Tom smirked to himself, 'I'll show them what real power is.'

Unfortunately, Tom had no classes with Harry that day.

It would've been fun to see how the students would react when the couple were in the same room.

The Slytherin could see how every student was dying to ask him some questions.

Fortunately, he did not have a class with Snape or Dumbledore either.

The whispers and pointing fingers followed him throughout the day. The students were relentless.

'Honestly, they  don't  even know how to be  subtle . The Slytherins too. What a shame.'

Finally when the last class ended, he saw the Slytherins rushing out before he could.
'No doubt waiting to confront me in the snake pit.'

Tom went slowly towards the dorms.

Today was the day he could prove that he was more powerful than the idiots who rule Slytherin.

Today, he'll get back his birthright that was kept away from him.

He will become the Slytherin Prince.

Many would think that the title of the Slytherin Prince is childish. A school game or something.

Some might think that the Prince is just a bully with power and control of the House. (Which is true for many cases)

But that's not true.

At least not for Tom. And not for the Slytherins either.

For him, the title is necessary.

Tom shuddered a little, just thinking about the blow his reputation will receive, if he does not become the Prince.

"Lord Slytherin who wasn't even a Prince when at Hogwarts." He could hear the disgust in the people's voices.

Becoming Prince was very beneficial for any Slytherin.
Even being a part of the Slytherin Court improves your standing in the society. At least where Slytherins were concerned.

Being a Slytherin already made three-fourth of the Magical Britain wary of you.

So, the remaining quater had their own ways of working in the society.

It made Slytherin House politics very important.

On the top of that, Tom was already in a very precarious position, being an outcast.

Tom entered the Common Room.

He saw every Slytherin, starting from third year, present in the room.
Malfoy and his goons were sitting near the fireplace, disgust and malice prominent in their faces.

Anticipation was present in the air.

Though there were many who wanted to see him put in his place (according to them licking their shoes), a few looked curious (they were the ones who knew, despite his blood, he was powerful and intelligent.)

His entrance caused the room to freeze.

Slowly, Malfoy and his goons stood up.

It was Parkinson who spoke first.
"Oh look! The mudblood is back from hiding." Then she started screaming, "HOW DARE YOU TRICK MY HADRIAN INTO WANTING YOU!!"

Tom blinked at that.

He was expecting them to doubt his Slytherin Lordship. Maybe about him being a presumed muggleborn and taking that title. Not this. Then her words registered.

He started laughing uncontrollably.

The whole room looked stunned. That was not the reaction they had expected.

Once his laughter died, he spoke, "Your- hahaha, your Hadrian? When did he become yours?"

Parkinson looked like she was going to attack Tom right then and there.

Malfoy stepped in and said, "Enough, Melinda."
Looking at him, the blonde's lips curled in contempt and said, "Mudblood. What matters more is that how dare you use the Slytherin name!? How dare you tarnish the noble name of Slytherin with your tainted blood!? Do you know anything about Slytherin!? Merlin, mudbloods like you should not be able to use magic! And you dare to taint this Noble House!? It is time to show you your place, mudblood!"

Many cheered after Malfoy's pathetic speech.
'Really! The idiot is from a noble house and can't use words outside his limited vocabulary!'

"And what is my place, Malfoy?" He asked coldly.

Malfoy looked even more angry and said, "Beneath my feet, mudblood! Licking our shoes! Those who have the purest blood! That is your place! Treated like the vermin you are!"

Again, many people laughed.

Tom smirked maliciously at him.
"You'll regret it."

With that, the duel started.

And ended within five minutes.

In five minutes, Tom had Malfoy Jr. bound and kneeling before him.

If the duel had happened a year ago, Tom would've said that Malfoy was a decent duelist.

But that was before he met Harry. Before he was trained by the man.

Now, all Tom could say that was, Malfoy was weak.
His movements were slow, his spell knowledge was limited, and he was inexperienced.

(Tom wondered how his brother was at dueling)

The whole House was looking at him in awe and apprehension.

Tom's spells were much more complex and he was better at dueling than other seventh year students.

Tom knew that he couldn't use any Dark spell inside Hogwarts, but he needed to do something. These sheeps needed to fear him.

The Slytherin casted a Tickling Charm on Malfoy.

He heard the rest of the students shuffling and laughing silently behind his back.
(Who would use a Tickling Charm of all things on their opponents?)

Tom did not end the spell immediately.
At first, Malfoy started laughing, but slowly he started squirming in discomfort and then came the pain.

He did not end the spell when Malfoy started pleading him to stop.
(Those who were laughing were now silent and starting to panic now)

"Pl-ple-please ple-ase s-stop t-this!"

Tom did not stop. Tears were falling uncontrollably from the blonde's eyes. He liked seeing the fear in his eyes. For so long he had dreamed of this, having his tormentors begging at his feet. Fearing him.

Tom crouched in front of him and asked, "Do you yield? Do you give up the title of the Slytherin Prince?"

"Y-y-yes! A-an-anything! P-please s-stop t-this." He was crying, begging him to stop.

But Tom did not stop. He was enjoying this rather too much to stop it just yet.

Malfoy was having difficulty in breathing. His face was almost white. 

"Please, stop!" A third year student yelled, tears falling down his face.

Tom stopped the spell gradually.

Looking up, he asked everyone, "Is anyone else opposed to this change?"

Everyone shaked their heads frantically.

Tom smiled coldly at them, "Good."

He looked around and asked, "Anyone next?"

Graham Montague, a seventh year, who was also known as the best duelist of Hogwarts, came forward. Though, his face wasn't malicious or taunting, but curious.

"I'll like to duel you."

They nodded to each other.

This duel was different than with Malfoy.

It was a formal one, a challenge rather than power-play.

Also, it lasted longer than the one with the blonde.

Tom had to admit, Montague was a good dueler. The boy was clever and agile. Plus, he had a good pain tolerance. It was clear, whoever had taught the boy was ruthless.

But no as ruthless as Harry.

The duel lasted for ten whole minutes.

It ended with Montague's wand in his hand. (Expelliarmus is a rather helpful spell)

"I yield." The boy said, his head down.

Tom nodded and gave the boy his wand back.

He looked at the students. They looked at him with awe and fear.

In fifteen minutes, he changed the Slytherin hierarchy.

Making his way to the couches near the fireplace, Tom transfigured one of them to a couch similar to the one Harry had.

Taking his place, he addressed everyone, "I'm Tom Marvolo Riddle, Lord Slytherin, and your new Prince. Displease me, you'll be punished. Same with those who won't listen. Anything that happens in the Slytherin dorms, stays here. Rules will be discussed tomorrow."

Leaning back, he added, "You'll not disturb Professor Peverell or me with your silly questions about us. And for those who still does not believe on my claim as Lord Slytherin, You're all stupid."

The students froze.

"Leave now. And get that out of my sight." He pointed his wand at Malfoy, who was a mess on the floor. Just for the sake of it, he sent a small tickling charm at him.

The students hurried towards their rooms.

Tom's eyes fell on one figure.

He shot a strong stinging hex at Melinda Parkinson.

The girl yelped and turned to look at him fearfully.

He glared at her and said,
"And remember, Hadrian Peverell is mine."

Chapter Text

Next morning, Tom was once again seated in his chair (throne).

The students were all waiting for him to give instructions.

Keeping his face indifferent, he started, "There are four rules you will follow from now on. We are Slytherins, subtle, cunning and ambitious, not reckless, stupid bullies." He stood up, to emphasize his point. "For so long, because of your prejudices, every Slytherin has suffered. We are shunned by three-fourth of the Magical Britain. And why? Because we are said to be bullies. And in some cases, it's true." He said, glaring at Malfoy. The blonde paled. Many students, who did not actually like Malfoy, were glaring at him too.

"So, you have four rules, and they are to be strictly followed. They will not bring change in one day, but it'll be a start."

"One, no one will use the word 'Mudblood'. If I hear a single person using, the consequences will not be pretty."

He saw many purebloods wanted to protest.

"You all know that every witch and wizard has magical blood. If some of them get it from squibs, why does it make a difference? Insulting them is an insult to Magic itself."
Harry had told him why every wizard, regardless of their blood, gets an Inheritance Test. Magic is not born out of nowhere. Every magical being had magical blood in them.

"But what about the mockery they make of our traditions and customs?" Someone shouted.

"Can you blame them for not knowing? Have you seen any pureblood going out of their own way, to teach muggleborn students? Can you bring here one book from either the school library or Diagon Alley which has information on Yule or Samhain?"

Everyone looked stumped at that.

"You can't, because there are none. The only reason I know about it is from hearing you talk about it in the Common Rooms. But for the rest, how will they know? In Gryffindor or Hufflepuff, most of the students are from the families who support Dumbledore. The children themselves don't know about our traditions, how can you accept them to tell their Muggleborn housemates? For Ravenclaws, almost every pureblood or halfblood is from Muggle hating families, and those who are not, are shunned by those supremacists, so the muggleborns can't get help there either. And we can't even talk about Slytherin."

"But-but, they are born to muggles. Those barbaric animals!" Alphard Black exclaimed.

"Barbaric?" Tom snorted. "What do you think muggles are? Creatures walking around in leaves and eating raw meat?"

To his utter surprise, and disbelief, many purebloods nodded.

"You really think that!?" He asked incredulously.

They nodded once again.

Resisting his urge to pinch is nose, he said, "Muggles, as much as I dislike them, are not that. Underestimating your enemies is one's downfall."

He sat back on his chair (throne) and said, "I'll not tell you how exactly muggles are, ask some muggleborn and find out yourself. It's an order."

Many looked unhappy at that, but Tom couldn't care less.

"The second rule is that you will not bully anyone outside this dorm. Gryffindors included." There were resigned nods from everyone.

"Third rule, if someone bullies you, pay back, but subtly. If you can't do it alone, ask for any Slytherins help."

"Four, your performance in the classes should be good. It is rather late for this year, but you'll do your best in this exams, no laziness will be accepted. I am not telling you to be the best in every subject, but atleast show interest in learning. Don't rely on your parents fortune for your future. We have a reputation to uphold."

"These four rules are to be strictly followed. I don't want my house's name to be tarnished because of some bunch of egoistic brats." He said, glaring at all of them.

Everyone nodded fearfully.

Tom waved his hand, signaling them to leave him alone.

The students then went to the Great Hall or back to their dorms.

The Slytherin Prince made his way to the Hall.

When he reached the Slytherin table, he looked at his normal seat.

He now had the right to sit at the center of the table. The seat, where usually every Prince sat, was empty. Two seats on both the sides and in front of them were empty too, for the new Court.

Tom looked back at his usual seat.
'This is where I started.'
The seat was his safe-place, away from the rest of the Slytherins. Tom admitted that he had a certain attachment to his seat. His start.

He went and sat there.

Every Slytherin looked at him. They'd expected him to sit at the center.

' I'm  the Prince,  I'll  sit wherever  I   want  to.'

He ignored them and ate his breakfast.

Halfway through it, he glanced at the teacher's table.

Harry was eating his breakfast, Slughorn speaking animatedly beside him.

Feeling eyes on him, Harry looked up and their eyes met.

The Professor took in his confident posture, slight smirk, proud eyes, the rest his House's constant glances towards Tom, their gazes filled with fear and awe.

Harry knew what happened.

The Professor mouthed, "Congratulations" and smiled at him proudly.

If Tom sat up straighter at that, well, no one saw it, except his beloved.

His day went on great. No Snape or Dumbledore, plus his last class was with Harry, which meant he could stay behind and talk with him.

The whole day, like the previous one, was filled with whispers and pointed fingers. Tom sighed, wondering when this craziness will end.

It reached its peak in Harry's class. As soon as Harry entered the class, the whispers got louder. It was clear that the students wanted to know anything that happened between the two of them.

But Harry, on the other hand, did not seem to be in the mood to indulge the students.

Some stern words, deduction of house points and the threat of detention made the students shut up.

At the end of the class, Harry asked Tom, discreetly, to stay behind.

As soon as the class ended, Harry quite literally threw the students out of the classroom and spelled the door lock.

"Hello Harr-", his greeting was cut-off by two strong arms pulling him into a broad chest.

He felt warm breath on his neck and realized Harry was nuzzling him.

Tom flushed. The close proximity did things to him he did not want to talk about.

"Hello, darling." He heard Harry's voice.

"Oh- Hello"

Harry pulled him closer and kept nuzzling his neck.

"Hmm. It's good to see you, Tom."

"We saw each other yesterday." He whispered

"I know. But this place is filled with idiots, my sweet. Except you. You, Tom, are the only reason I haven't committed genocide yet." Though, he sounded like he wanted to.

Tom laughed at that. Harry was crazy, but he loved. He felt the other man smiling in his neck.

Harry leaned back and said, smirking, "Congratulations, my sweet, or should I say, my Prince."

Tom pretended to think and said in a mock snobbish tone, "I think Prince will do," grinning, he added, "my Lord."

Harry smirked at him and said, "Of course, my little Prince."

"Hey! I'm not little!"

The man only raised an eyebrow and looked at him.

Tom blushed and said, "Whatever. How are you? You look tired."

He frowned a bit and replied, "Ah, yes. The students. They are quite nosy." Then he smiled and said, "Though good news, Skeeter lost her license."

"Good. Though, I want to help you with something. Anything" He saw the man wanted to disagree but stopped him and continued, "You helped me a lot, you know, with the inheritance test, the articles and you teach me too. I haven't done anything for you! Please?" He tried his best to look earnest.

Sighing, Harry said, "Alright. I get it. You know what? Everyday, I've a lot of papers to grade and assignments to check. You can help me with it."

Tom smiled brightly at him, "Okay!"

Harry held his hands and looked closely at them. He caressed the area near his thumb.

Tom stiffened. He did not want Harry to know that. He did not want anyone to know it.

He tried to snatch his hands back, but Harry, who had seen his reaction, held them tighter and asked, "What is it, Tom?"

"It's nothing, Harry."

"It's clearly not nothing, from the way you're trying to hide it."

Tom clenched his jaw. He knew, one day or the other he had to tell what happened to his hand. But admitting it made him look weak.

"Tom, I know whatever it is, you've glamoured it."

'Of  course , the man would  know  that!'

"Why ask me today, if you knew this already?" He tried to divert the topic.

The man gave him a look, which clearly indicated that he knew what Tom was trying to do, but indulged him.

"I thought it's a tattoo."

"A tattoo?" He asked incredulously.

"Yes, many students at Ilvermorny had them. A few got embarrassed of what their tattoo depicted after a few years, so they always glamoured it. I have some too." 'Where-'

Tom wanted to give the same reason, but knew that he lost his chance.

Sighing, he said, "Okay, I'll tell you. But can we please go to your room?"

"Of course."

Chapter Text

They entered Harry's room. Tom knew that no matter how hard he tried to change the topic, the man wouldn't relent.
Though Harry understood Tom not wanting to speak about his childhood or his days at Hogwarts, the man always made him talk about the things he had a problem with, be it a spell or Snape and Dumbledore, and would always offer his help.

So he knew that he had to tell his secret, which no soul other than Nagini knew about.

Harry led them to the couch they usually sat on and looked at him expectantly.

Tom sighed and started talking,  "Last year, the Ministry had sent one of its members to Hogwarts. Though they said it was to look over the Hogwarts curriculum, it was clear that they wanted to keep a semblance of control over Hogwarts. The person they sent was Dolorous Umbridge."

Harry sneered at the name. "That pink toad?"

"Yes. I hope you know that she's a pureblood supremacist."

Harry nodded at him.

Looking down, Tom continued, "Well, she did not like me being a Slytherin. On the top of that, me being the top ranking student enraged her more."

Harry's face hardened and he asked, "What did she do?"

"I- I don't remember the exact reason why she gave me a detention, but during it, I was told to write lines. Then, that bitch made the most stupid excuses to give me detentions." He said angrily.

"There's more to that."

Biting his lips, Tom offered Harry his hand and removed the glamour.

I must respect my betters

The words were etched on his hands in his handwriting.

No matter whatever Tom tried, the scars did not fade away. Months later, he had realized that Umbridge made him use a-

"Blood Quill."

The cold fury in Harry's voice made Tom shiver. His hands were tightly gripped and he saw the Professor's eyes were glowing green.

"Harry?"

"She'll pay for this. She'll be begging to be killed when I finish torturing her." The dark promise was evident in the sentence.

"I know." He knew that he had quite literally sealed Umbridge's fate now. He did not care, the toad deserved it.

Tilting his head, Harry asked curiously, "Will you like to join me?"

"For what?" He asked, confused.

"To torture her."

Tom was surprised. Will he like to? Does he want to torture someone?
A better question, will he like to torture Umbridge?

'Hell yes'

"Yess?"

"It won't be pretty, Tom. At least, that's what people think. I, on the other hand, think that the toad will look much better resembling a bloody mess." There was a wistful smile on his face.

Tom was thoughtful for some moments.  He knew that if he did not want to torture, Harry will not think any less of him, but a larger part of him wanted to impress Harry.

'Yes,  impressing  by  torturing  someone to death. What a  great  date!'

"I'll join you."
This would be his first time torturing someone. Could he do it? He knew the twisted part of him loved seeing others in pain. So surely he will be okay with it, right?

Harry looked at him for a few moments and then said, "Alright."

And then he suddenly stood up from the couch and went to the fireplace. Tom saw the man call someone and talk to them for a few seconds before the person vanished.

Then Harry went to his bedroom and came back a few minutes later with a bundle of clothes with him.

The floo roared to life once again, and Harry answered the call.

Moments later, Harry approached him and gave him some robes.

"Umm. What is this?"

"Robes. We're going now." The rage was still present in his voice.

"Now!?"

Looking at him in the eye, Harry said, "Yes now, Tom. I know this is sudden, but if I don't kill someone, some students will end up dead." The murderous look in his eyes grew.

"But- but what about Hogwarts? How will we leave the wards? And someone will surely notice our absence?"

"I've got it covered. If you don't want to come, I understand?"

The Slytherin thought hard. He trusted Harry to take care of Hogwarts.
Nodding, he put on the robes given to him.

They were pitch black with dark green lining on the hem and had a hood.

He noticed Harry wore a similar robe. The only difference was the lining on his robe was blue.

Looking satisfied, Harry gave him a mask.

It covered half his face till his nose and was of the same color scheme as his robe. It was the same case with Harry's mask.

'How can a person look so hot with half of their face covered?' He asked himself, looking at Harry, but quickly shut downthe thought. He was going to torture and probably murder someone, he did not think the route his thoughts were taking were appropriate at such moments.

The man beckoned him towards the floo and asked him to step in it.

"Number 12, Grimmauld Place." Harry said.

Nodding, Tom slightly yelled the name and threw the floo.

After the discerning experience, he opened his eyes and was greeted with a dark room and a middle-aged man. He stepped out and looked  slightly warily at the man.

A moment later, Harry emerged from the floo.

Tom's breath caught when he felt Harry's magic. His magic, which was always tightly bound, when at Hogwarts, was flowing freely now. Tom had never encountered such dark magic before.

The man made a perfect picture of a Dark Lord right now.

The unknown man whispered something to Harry.

"Let's go hunting." The Dark Lord said, gleefully. The man in front of him was not the Harry he saw everyday, but a wild, uncontrollable destructive creature.

The middle-aged man bowed and apparated away silently.

The Dark Lord offered his hand to Tom, which he accepted, and the two of them popped away.

In a dark alley near the Ministry of Magic, Tom, Harry and the unknown man were waiting silently for their target to step outside.

For Tom, Harry looked like a predator waiting for his prey. The Dark Lord's eyes were sharp and was twirling his wand, which was different from the one he used at Hogwarts, between his fingers. Despite his relaxed state, Tom could sense his eagerness at the prospect of torturing someone.

Even after knowing that his professor was the Dark Lord, he never thought of the man as bloodthirsty. But right now, that thirst was evident in his eyes.

The three of them were standing under strong notice-me-not charm.

"How do you know we'll find her here, my Lord? She could use the floo inside the Ministry." The Slytherin asked. He did not know why he used the title. It just felt right to use it now.

The Dark Lord looked briefly surprised but answered his question, "I have a report on almost every high-ranking Ministry official in Britain. The work is mostly done by the low ranking Reapers. It helps a lot in having dirt on them and during times like this."

Ten minutes later, a pink cladded figure stepped outside from the Ministry building.

The three of them followed the witch.

Umbridge went to many different shops for clothes and cat food. Then the toad went to a dark alley. A shady looking man approached her and after a brief discussion, gave her a small  pouch and left.

As soon as the man left, Harry went towards the toad quietly from behind. Before Tom could comprehend what the man was doing, a dagger emerged in the Dark Lord's hand and before the witch could turn behind, he hit her in the head with the hilt of the dagger, rendering her unconscious.

Quickly, the unknown man, who Tom now thought was a Reaper, went towards Harry and the Slytherin followed him.

"Why did you use a dagger? Why not a spell?" He whispered, genuinely confused.

The Dark Lord shrugged and said, "It's more satisfying. Actually hitting someone." He then turned to the Reaper and said, "Bring the bitch to the dungeons at Grimmauld."

With that, the Dark Lord took Tom's arm and apparated away to the Grimmauld Place, with the Reaper following them.

When they popped inside Grimmauld, the Dark Lord continued, "Plus, not using magic does not leave any significant amount of magical signature. Small things like apparition leaves a very minute amount of our signature which fades away in a matter of seconds. On the top of that, using spells to remove magical signatures takes time. We couldn't afford anyone stumbling upon us. So using a muggle way to attack helps."

Tom nodded. It made sense.

The duo made their way to the dungeons.

The place was dark and cold. Perfect place to keep a prisoner.

The unknown man was already standing in front of a cell.

Harry nodded at the man and went inside the cell, Tom following him.

Chapter Text

The inside of the cell was quite larger than he expected. Umbridge was lying in one corner of the cell. A table present near the door of the cell. On the table, a wand and several other objects were present.

The Dark Lord sneered at the prone body of the witch and sent a rennervate at her.

With a startled gasp, the witch woke up and started looking around the cell. Finally, her eyes settled on the two wizards at the centre of the room and started shrieking.

"WHO ARE YOU!? WHERE AM I!? DO YOU EVEN KNOW WHO I A-"

Sneering even more at the witch, the Dark Lord hit her with a strong crucio.

Umbridge started screaming and crying from the pain.

As soon as her screams started, a pleased expression came over the Dark Lord's face.
The man was enjoying the torture. Tom wondered how long it would last.

After a few minutes, the Dark Lord cancelled the spell and went towards the witch. He stared at her coldly for a minute, before he asked her, "Do I know who you are, yes. A pathetic, soon-to-be dead bitch. Let me ask you, do you know who I am?"

Even his voice changed as he talked. The velvety, warm voice which Tom was accustomed to, changed into a cold, cruel voice.

Umbridge's face went pale as she realized who the person in front of her was. "L-lord Had-des?"

"Yes." He sneered and flicked his wrist.

The sound of snapping of a bone was heard in the cell.

The toad started sobbing and pleading even more.

The Dark Lord smiled manically at that and broke five more bones. He then snapped his fingers and yelled, "Kreacher!"

An old looking, wrinkly house-elf popped inside the cell.
"How can I help you, Master Hades?"

"Bring me the Black Quill from the Red room."

"Yes, Master."

The elf went and came back seconds later with a black box.

The Dark Lord took the box from the elf and dismissed Kreacher. He then took out a black quill from it and kept it in front of Umbridge.

The toad's eyes went frantically from the Dark Lord to the quill.

He gave the witch a sinister smile and turned to look at Tom.

"What do you wish her to write, my dear?" He asked in a sweet tone, as if asking which flower he wanted.

Tom gulped. 'Huh. This is it. My first intended torture.'

He looked at the toad. The woman had scarred him for life without reason or an ounce of regret. No, the sick woman enjoyed it. She made his fifth year hell. Tom had vowed to make her pay for it. He will make her pay for it.

"I must respect my betters." He said in a cold voice.

The man nodded and looked back at the woman.
Sneering, he spat at her, "You have two options. Either you do this willingly or I'll force you to do it. And I can confirm that the second option will be much more painful."

Sobbing, Umbridge said, "I-I'm s-sorry, my Lord! I swear I-I haven't done a-anything. P-please spare m-me, my Lord. I-I'll do anything, p-please, m-my Lord."

If anything, it enraged the Dark Lord even more. Furious, he spoke, "Your Lord! You don't deserve to even be in my presence, let alone call me your Lord. You disgust me, you vile filth. Crucio!" He tortured the witch again and said, "Imperio!"

With that, he forced the women to write the lines for over half-an-hour.

Tom noticed that the lines did not only appear behind her hand, but they covered every inch of her body.

Umbridge was a shaking, wailing and bloody mess when the Dark Lord ended the spell. Blood and filth was all over her body.

Immediately, she fainted.

The Dark Lord once again revived her and pressed his boot on her hand. Tom winced, hearing more breaking noises. Umbridge's cries became louder.
With a wave of his hand, the Black Quill flew into the Dark Lord's hand, who vanished it then.

Tilting his head, he asks quietly, "Do you know, Dolores, why are you here?" This time, his voice was calmer and steadier, like the one he used while teaching.

The witch only shaked her head frantically.

Smiling nastily, he gestured Tom to come forward and said, "Remove the mask, sweet."

Quite surprised, Tom removed the mask.

Umbridge squints at him, clearly not able to see properly. Recognition crossed her features.

"Y-you!"

"Yes, me." Tom drawled.

"Wh-what? W-why? He's a m-mudblood, my Lord!" She yelled.

Suddenly, she was once again put under the cruciatus curse, this time more painful. He then used a blood-boiling and some other dark curses on her.

"You will respect him, Umbridge!" The Dark Lord spat.

The witch could only nod fearfully, tears and blood falling down her face.

Looking at the toad-like woman in disgust, the Lord turned towards Tom.
"Have you ever used any Dark spell, Tom?"

"No, my Lord. I only know the theory."

The Dark Lord looked happy and said, "Well, my prince, this is a perfect opportunity to teach you the spells then!"

After that, with Harry's guidance, Tom practised many different spells on the woman, ranging from slightly dark spells like a nightmare inducing one to the unforgivables.

By the end, a literal bloody mess remained of the women, and it was only Harry's magic which was keeping her alive.

Looking at her made Tom slighly nauseous.

Also, the Dark Lord looked more and more excited as he taught Tom different spells. Yes, he was a really good Professor. It was quite clear that he was enjoying this, which should be quite disturbing, right?
But the man also started flirting with him in between the teachings/torturing.

"Now darling, you have only one Unforgivable to master. I hope you can do it?" Tom shivered at the velvety voice. The man was quite literally plastered behind his back, his hands sliding up and down his arms, and whispering in his ear. He could only nod at this point.

"Hmm. You know the incantation and the wand movements right, sweet? Remember, you have to mean it. Focus on your intention, your want to kill her. Not on the hatred. It will only complicate the matter. Concentrate on your desire, darling."

Tom leveled his wand at the woman. 

"Avada Kedavra"

When the duo exited the dungeons, Tom saw the unknown man reading some tome in the living room.

Noticing their presence, he stood up and asked, "What to do next, my Lord?"

The Dark Lord sat on one of the couches, ignoring the blood and entrails on him, and pulled Tom on his side.

"The next attack is tomorrow at seven right?"

"Yes."

"Hmm. The charms will hold on till then. Who is tomorrow's target?"

"Walden McNair."

The Dark Lord sneered and said, "Tell others not to finish off the scum tomorrow. We'll fix another date. Use the bitch downstairs."

"Alright."

"Who are the ones in charge of the attack tomorrow?"

The man gave the Dark Lord some papers, which he immediately started to go over. Tom was half-listening to their conversation. He felt nauseous and sick.

"You can remove the mask, Moony. And Tom, you need to eat something. You look like you'll faint any moment now. You alright?"

"Yes." Tom mumbled.

The man, Moony apparently, removed his mask.

The man had light brown hair and green eyes, though they were different from Harry's. He was quite tall, taller than Harry, and had some scars across his face.

Tom wondered why he hadn't noticed his hair and eye color before. The man was wearing a half-mask too.

The man seemed to know what he was thinking and said, "The mask has various charms on it to protect our identity. The most basic ones are a variation of the notice-me-not charm." He had a rather kind voice for someone who had just participated in a murder.

"Oh. Thank you, Mr. Moony."

The man chuckled slightly and said, "Please call me Remus or Moony, if you will. I'm Remus Black."

"I'm Tom Riddle. Are you related to Harry's godfather?" He asked curiously.

The man smiled softly and said, "Yes. He's my husband."

"Oh."

The man then went into some room and returned with the bottled potion.

"Take this, you'll feel better."

Tom took the bottle and looked at Harry.

The whole time, he was engrossed completely in what was written on the parchment. He had a quill in his hand and was writing something frequently on the sheet. It reminded him of Harry grading the assignments at school.

School. Hogwarts. He had almost forgotten about it. Only hours ago, he was there, complaining about stupid brats and fussing over assignments. And now, here he was, sitting beside the most dangerous Dark Lord in decades, with his godfather's husband, who happened to be a Reaper, after murdering someone. His first murder. It was so surreal.

He also noticed the giddiness and the rush of power he felt. Untill now, he was so caught up in the thought that he murdered someone, that he did not notice his body's reaction. He could also sense the powerful waves of dark magic coming from Harry and Remus. Pure dark magic was flowing in his body.  He had never experienced such tremendous force of power before. He was feeling lightheaded from the rush of power.

Suddenly, he started giggling. He had never felt so great before!

Harry looked up from the parchment and grinned at him. He gave the sheet to Moony and took the requested potion.

"Drink that, Tom. In this state, you'll not be able to eat anything. "

He blinked owlishly at the man, before drinking the potion, grimacing at the taste. He then started giggling uncontrollably. Again.

He had read about the effects of Dark magic on a wizard. Especially using it first time. But experiencing it was a whole new different thing. It was glorious.

The Dark Lord spoke with Moony for sometime, after which the man left.

Harry then stood up from the couch, placed his arms under the Slytherin's knees and arms, and lifted Tom in his arms.

Tom giggled even more at that.

"Huh. I should've not let you use so many dark spells today. My fault. Come on, little snake, time to sleep."

"You're so strong. How are you able to lift me up?" He felt drunk now.

The man smirked a bit and said, "Because I'm strong."

Tom could do nothing but giggle at the man.

Finally, they went inside a room, which had a big king-sized bed in it.

Harry settled him on it and waved his wand over both of them to change their clothes. He then went to the other side of the bed and sat on it, leaning on the headboard.

"Wait! We aren't supposed to do this!"
Tom exclaimed.

"Do what?" The man asked, raising his eyebrow, clearly amused at Tom's drunk-like-state.

"This! Sleeping together! You haven't even kissed me yet! This is not proper!" He blushed and said.

The man laughed loudly. Finally controlling himself, he said, "Darling, killing someone isn't proper too, but we did it anyway. So, I think we're beyond that. Also, we're only sleeping now. Nothing improper." He then smirked lecherously and said, "Unless you want to."

Tom blushed even more and squeaked, mortified, "N-no!"

The man then looked hurt and said, "W-wait. No? Like ever?"

Tom panicked, thinking he had really hurt the man and said, "No! Not like that! We can! But- but not now!" His face was burning with embarrassment now.

Harry, who couldn't help it anymore, doubled up, laughing loudly now.

"Hey! You're teasing me! Meanie!"

That made Harry laugh even more. His stomach started to hurt by laughing so hard.

"I couldn't help it, sweet. You're just... Merlin, I just- I can't wait for tomorrow morning." He said between his laughs.

Finally when he stopped laughing, he laid down beside Tom, putting an arm over him and bringing him close.

"Sleep, my sweet. It's late now. Plus, you are exhausted now. You've used a lot of magic today. "

"Alright." Tom mumbled, finally feeling tired.

"Good night, Tom."

"Good night, Harry."

With that he fell asleep, exhaustion taking over him, snuggling closer to the Darkest Lord in centuries.

Chapter Text

Tom snuggled closer to the warmth. It felt like forever since he had such a nice sleep. But something was bothering him.

'Was  that laughing he heard?'

Yes. He heard someone laugh. Frowning, he wondered who had the gall to enter his room. He wanted to curse the bastard whoever it was, but that meant getting up and he was very, very comfortable right now.

The warmth too started moving. Frustrated, he opened his eyes.

Immediately, he was greeted with bright light. Too bright light. He closed his eyes, headache already on its way.
'Why is it so bloody bright in the dungeons?'

"It's bright because you're not at Hogwarts in the Slytherin dorms, but at my godfather's old house."

He knew that voice. That deep, warm, hot voice.

Harry.

Tom shot up from his sleeping position, wide-eyed.
And was promptly pulled back by the hand, which he now noticed, on his waist.

"Don't tell me you always wake up like this." Harry said, amused.

Tom, who was facing a (thankfully) clothed chest, looked up at Harry, face red.

"Uh. No."

"Good. Cause I like lazing in the bed for some time in the morning." He said, smirking at him.

Tom only flushed at the insinuation.

"Good morning, sweet."

"G' morning." He mumbled, still sleepy and a bit embarrassed.

Slowly, yesterday's memories came back to his mind. He exhaled slightly, thinking about yesterday night.

"I'm sorry." He heard Harry whisper.

"Why?" He asked, confused.

"For yesterday. The torture and dark magic." Something was clearly bothering him.

"You had warned me." Tom pointed out softly.

"I know. I- You saw me yesterday. The real me. The monster that I am. You're clearly bothered by the torture, but I, on the other hand, enjoyed what happened yesterday. Always have. And you were bothered by that too." Harry looked away.

Tom could see some traces of guilt on his face. He knew it wasn't for what he had done, but for the fact that Tom had seen him like that.

The Slytherin raised his hand and touched Harry's cheek.
"Yes, last night's events bothered me. But not the way you think. It's just the fact that I finally killed someone. It's so surreal. I always knew I'd do that one day." Smiling sadly he added, "And about being a monster, aren't we all? There is evil and good in every person. In the end, it's about power. The people at my orphanage had power over me, they abused it. They thought it's justified. Umbridge did the same. You have power, you did what you thought was right. And I support you, stand by you. Your Reapers support you. Maybe some will think it's wrong, but I don't think so."

Harry looked at him and kissed his hand, smiling softly at him, his eyes filled with affection for the younger wizard.

"I should thank you too, for letting me get my revenge, my dear Dark Lord."

The man chuckled at the title, pulling Tom closer to him.

The two of them were sitting at the dining table and having their breakfast, when Tom questioned, "What about Hogwarts? Surely the others will realize our absence."

Harry only smirked and said, "I'll tell you later, sweet."

Tom nearly pouted, but refrained from doing so.

"I was wondering, Tom. The term is ending soon. Will you like to stay with me at my Manor?"

"I'd love to." He said gratefully. The choice was easy. A hellhole or heaven.

Harry smiled at him.

After they finished their breakfast, the duo went to the living room.

Tom remembered something.
"You wanted to speak about something yesterday."

"Oh. Yes, I did." Harry grimaced slightly.

It wasn't going to be a pleasant conversation.

"What is it?"

"It's about your family."

That stopped him. "My family?" He asked, cautiously.

"Yes. The Riddles and Gaunts."

"What about them?"

Harry sighed and said, "Follow me."

And they went into another room.
'How many rooms does this place have?' He wondered, trying to distract his mind from the coming conversation.

The room was actually a study and was huge. It had a ebony colored desk near the center of the wall, with many parchments and folders upon it, along with two quills, an ink pot and some boxes. A dark brown cupboard with many books, scrolls and files was behind the desk.

A large bookshelf was situated opposite to the desk, covering the entire wall. A floor-to-celing window was on the adjacent wall, with dark blue curtains. The room was filled with blue, silver and black colored furniture, with hints of green and red.

There were many couches and a small fireplace in a corner.

Harry led him to one of the couches.
Sighing, he started speaking, "Your family. I've actually met them, most of them."

"You've met them?" He asked, incredulously.

"Yes." His eyes went distant then, "The first person I met was Morfin Gaunt. I was sixteen at that time. He had something I wanted. My family heirloom. Took me years to track him down. It was quite a surprise when I met him. A Parselmouth, like me. A Slytherin descendant."

"What was he like?"

Harry grimaced and said, "A disgrace, honestly. When I discovered that a Slytherin descendant had my heirloom, I thought of some respectable person. But Morfin, he was like an animal. The House of Gaunt was so inbred, that their legacy was mentally deranged and violent. He believed strongly in pureblood supremacy. At first, I tried to take this ring", here he showed Tom the ring he always wore, "from him peacefully, but the man did not comply. I almost killed him. He's locked up in Azkaban now. A nd he'll never get out."

Tom nodded at that. Morfin did not sound like a sane person, so he was alright with never meeting that man.

"A few months after that, I heard the news of Marvolo Gaunt's, Morfin's father, death in Azkaban. After that, I almost forgot about them."

He then looked at Tom and continued, "But then I met you. Honestly, you caught my interest from the moment I read about you. But your name intrigued me too. Tom Riddle."

"Though I hate the Muggles, their inventions and discoveries are priceless, so I invest in the muggle businesses too. From there, I knew Thomas Riddle, your grandfather. He was a business associate of mine. Though, I did not approach them until you accepted my courtship offer. I hope you remember the my first attack, on Little Hangleton?"

Tom nodded.

"Before the attack took place, I met them. The three of them did not know about your existence. Though even if they did, it wouldn't have benefitted you. The older ones, Thomas and Mary, are stuck-up rich people who did not want to associate with anyone 'beneath' them. And Tom Riddle, your father, his mind is messed up."

"What do you mean 'messed up'?" He was already dreading the answer.

Harry shook his head and continued, "The man hates everyone. It does not matter whether the person is rich or poor, magical or muggle, old or young. Nothing matters. He hates everyone on principle. I knew that the hatred was not natural, but caused by some magical means. So, I read his mind. It was then I came to know about Merope Gaunt, your mother."

He sighed again, like whatever he was going to say will hurt Tom.

"What happened?" He desperately wanted to know the answer.

"Merope was Marvolo's daughter. A squib. She was abused by her father and brother her whole life. Even though it was a memory, I had never seen such a defeated-looking woman before. Also, one more reason her father and brother hated her was beacuse of her infatuation with Tom Riddle, a muggle. They loathed her for it."

"But for Merope, Tom was a prince. A rich, handsome man who rode horses and had a big, beautiful mansion. Merope was obsessed with him. But Tom was already engaged to some other woman that time. Even if he wasn't, he would've never liked Merope at all. Though her obsession with him never ended. And then one, she tricked him into drinking a love potion. Amortentia."

Tom paled and gasped silently at that. Harry held his hands tightly, continuing the tale, "It worked. Tom Riddle fell in 'love' with her. Though Amortentia never creates love, but an obsession. So, the two of them eloped together and got married. A year later, Tom was somehow liberated from the effects of the potion. I don't know how. Maybe he developed a resistance against it, or Merope stopped giving him it, either from guilt or the thought that he'll stay with her for their unborn child, or maybe because she simply forgot. I don't know."

"He knew she was pregnant?" He asked, shocked.

"Not exactly. He thought she was lying. She'd already tricked her into marriage and literally forced herself on him, so he did not believe a single word she said and left. But the potion had never left his system. He had no treatment from any magical being. Since no spells were used, the Ministry never got to know. And Tom Riddle was left with the most powerful love potion in his body. At first nothing significant happened to him, but slowly the potion had it's negative effects. Already, the people of Little Hangelton said that he had 'lost his mind' whenever he talked about 'witchcraft' and 'potions'. Amortentia caused him to hate everyone. It started slowly. Small things like getting angry at the housekeepers and servants, but then it grew. He grew distant from his own parents, best friends and relatives. Nobody ever understood the reason behind it. Love potion made him hate everyone. Quite ironic."

Yes, it was ironic. Maybe if it were someone else, he'd have researched more about it. But to know, he was the one born under the effects of the thrice-damned potion made him ill.

Harry looked at him and said, "Tom, I don't think that the potion has affected you in any way. And even if it has, I'll always stay with you, sweet."

Tom relaxed a little and asked, "What happened to Merope then?" How did a witch end up in a muggle orphanage?

"Merope was heartbroken after Tom left. She had nowhere to go. I think she knew that going back to Marvolo and Morfin would end up either them killing both of you, or them demanding her to abort you. I know that she had a Slytherin heirloom with her when she eloped."

Here, he opened his palm and a wooden box came flying from the cupboard, into his hand. He opened the box and took out something from it. It was a gaudy-looking, heavy gold locket with a serpentine S in glittering green stone inlay on the front. Tom knew he had seen the locket somewhere before.

"Salazar Slytherin's locket." Harry informed him.

Ah yes, he had seen the locket in Slytherin's portrait. The man was wearing it.

"She went to Borgin and Burke's, a junk shop in Knockturn Alley, to sell this locket. The owner of the shop immediately knew that this is a priceless artefact and tricked her into selling it to him just for 10 galleons. Merope, who was already desperate for money, did it. Finally, she somehow ended up in a muggle orphanage, where she gave birth to you, naming you after your and her fathers, before she died."

He handed over the locket to Tom, who took it carefully. Though he did not like what his mother did, this locket belonged to his family, his ancestors, and he'd take care of it.

"Thank you." He said to Harry.

The man looked confused and asked, "Aren't you angry that I met them, at least the Riddles, without asking you?"

"Maybe I should be. But they don't sound like people worth meeting. I am better off without ever meeting them. And what happened with my father, it was terrible. He did not deserve that, no matter what kind of person he was. I think it's better if he never meets me." He answered honestly, smiling softly at the man, who cared so much for him. 

Even though the man was a Dark Lord, he did so much for him, cared for him. Tom would never be able to hate the man for anything.

The two of them sat there for sometime in silence, basking in each other's presence.

After that, Harry gave him some books and started to teach him more about the Dark Arts.

It was nearly dinner time when Harry announced that they are going back to Hogwarts.

Tom's eyes widened, "Oh Merlin, I forgot about that! They'll notice our absence, won't they?"

Smiling, Harry went towards the desk and opened a small golden box lying on it. He took out a golden necklace which had an hourglass looking thing on it.

"You have a time turner?" Tom asked in disbelief.

"You'll be surprised by the things I have. I'm not a Dark Lord for nothing." He said smugly. "Plus, this one can take us 24 hours back in time."

"You made it?"

"I enhanced it."

He then stood close to Tom and wound the necklace around both of them.

Going back in time wasn't a good experience. His head was spinning from it.

Harry, on the other hand, did not look perturbed at all. He then transfigured the exact golden box from the past (or future?) and kept the time-turner in it. He then performed some charm on them.

They heard some noises from the living room for some moments before the people below went away.

"What spell was that?"

"It masks our scent. Remus is a werewolf, so he could smell us."

"Oh." He was surprised to know that tidbit.

The duo then went to the living room, and then to Hogwarts.

Chapter Text

Coming back to Hogwarts was weird after yesterday's (or tonight's) events. Travelling back in time was weirder.
'Merlin! My past self is going to kill Umbridge in the next few hours.'

As soon as they entered the room, Harry asked a house-elf to bring snacks for them and they sat in his quarters till dinner time. They talked about different magical theories and Harry started to teach him about House duties and business management.

When they entered the Great Hall together, everyone was looking at them, clearly knowing that the two of them spent the time with each other.
'Give us a break people', he thought, scowling in the direction of the students who were pointing at him.

When he sat at his usual place at the Slytherin table, after a few minutes, someone sat in front of him.

Theodore Nott.

He was in the same year as Tom, and was a bookworm. He was the only person Tom had seen, besides Harry, who always carried a book with himself.

The boy wasn't one of Malfoy's goons and he actually had never bullied Tom, verbally or physically. But they weren't friends.

The two of them had talked sometimes in the library or whenever they had partnered up during classes.

But they weren't friends.

"Riddle." The other boy greeted.

"Nott. How can I help you?"

"Oh, I don't want anything." He said simply.

Tom stared at the boy. Why was he here th-

"You want to be a Court member, don't you?"

"Somewhat."

"What do you mean 'somewhat'? You did not want to associate with me before."

Nott sighed and said, "How could I? Malfoy practically ruled Slytherin. My father is a pureblood supremacist. If anyone ever saw me talking to you, well, the results wouldn't have been pretty."

Ah yes, he had heard about how pureblood parents treated their children if they misbehaved.
"Why now then?"

"Honestly, there are many reasons. You're the Slytherin Prince. You're Lord Slytherin. You're the future Mr. Peverell. If my father gets to know about this, I can give him many reasons."

His ears turned slightly pink at the 'future Mr. Peverell'.

"Yes. But why should I associate with you?" He challenged the boy.

Here, the boy smirked and said, "Because you need the help of a Slytherin to further yourself in Slytherin House politics. Professor Peverell may guide you in politics, but even he does not have much influence in the British pureblood dark houses. And, I know the perfect people who will help you in your journey, without stabbing your back."

Tom knew he had to build a reputation for himself. Harry was a helping factor, his reputation will not help in the Slytherin House. These are stuck-up pureblood supremacists and semi-openly dark. And Harry is a halfblood and a closet Dark Lord. Plus, many of the dark families hold a grudge against James Peverell, the Light's Hero, Gryffindor.

Begrudgingly, he said, "Very well, I'll think about it."

Nott raised an eyebrow but conceded.

And then followed him in every class the next day.

For being a bookworm, the boy talked a lot. Making jokes in between classes, discreetly pranking students, teasing him in Harry's class. The boy did everything.

And, as much as he did not like it, his own lips twitched many times.

Harry only raised his eyebrow and smiled when he saw the two of them laughing silently in his class, before turning back to the lesson.

The two of them together had caught the attention of many students.

One stupid Ravenclaw even had the gall to say, "Look, Riddle's with a different guy today! That cheating fucker!", which earned him two broken bones from an accidental prank.

Finally after the last class, the two of them sat in the common room, near the fireplace.

"So, have you made a decision, Riddle?"

"First tell me about the people you think can make decent Court members."

Nott smiled, like it was a 'yes'.
"There are two categories. One, who you should add immediately, and two, those who you watch first before accepting them."

"Well, name the first ones." He demanded.

"The Greengrass sisters, for one. Though their family is neutral, they are politically strong. Both the girls are highly intelligent, good at dueling and politics. There is a reason the elder sister, Daphne, is called the Ice Queen. But don't underestimate Astoria, the younger one. She is equally terrifying."
He pointed to the two girls reading together on a couch. Both of them were well-known in the house. Daphne was in his year and Astoria a fifth-year.

"Second, Graham Montague, the one you dueled with. The best, now the second best, dueler of Hogwarts. Is smart and good at strategies. The Slytherin Chaser and Captain of the Quidditch team. Never underestimate the power of that sport." Graham was a heavily built boy with black hair and sharp eyes. Yes, the boy could be a good asset.

"Third, Adrian Pucey, same year as Montague. Though a pureblood supremacist, he does not entirely believe in it. The only reason he hated Muggleborns is because of them not knowing our customs. Again, he is a good dueler and can become a good politician. Persuasive and charming too." The boy had sharp features and reminded him a little of Harry, whenever the man wanted something from someone.

"They are the ones you should immediately look for." Nott concluded.

"And the second category ones?" He asked, mind reeling from the information.

"The Lestrange twins, Rudolphus and Rabastan, fifth years, Orion Black, fourth year, Tracey Davis, sixth year, Evan Rosier, third year, Blaise Zabini, sixth year and Barty Crouch, fourth year Ravenclaw."

"Are those students good?"

"The best with a bit more push." Nott said confidently.

"Well then, Theodore, it seems that I have to tolerate you." He said and sighed.

Theo only laughed and said, "Call me Theo."

"Call me, Tom."

With that, he had the first member in his Court, and what he did not know, a loyal friend.

From that day, the two of them were always seen together.

At first, Tom thought that the boy would bore him, but the complete opposite happened.

Theo had a wicked sense of humor and an equally sharp tongue. There were many students, from every House, who started questioning his loyalty to Harry when he had started hanging out with his fellow Slytherin.

At first, Tom had tried to ignore the students (old habits), but it had been Theo who had cursed one. Then, it started as a competition who will hex the offender first. Not the most moral challenge, but who cares.

Tom started to enjoy the other boy's company. He understood why people wanted friends. It was fun to joke and fool around, sometimes.

The Slytherin Lord also thought that his friendship with Theo might affect Harry. He had heard many times how couples broke up because one of them got close to someone else. He liked spending time with Theo, but Merlin, he did not like Theo like that. And the feeling was mutual.

During their weekend, when Harry and Tom spent almost the whole day together in the Professor's room, he had asked the man about it.

Harry only laughed and said, "I don't mind you making friends, sweet. As for the rumors, I don't care about what those children think. I'm good at reading a person's intentions. Nott does not harbor any romantic feelings for you." He then smiled mischievously and said, "Though I've seen him eyeing the elder Greengrass quite often."

Hah! He finally had something over Theo to tease him about.

"Next year will be your last year at Hogwarts, Tom. Enjoy it while it lasts. I miss my school days too sometimes." The nostalgic expression was replaced with a smirk, "Go make friends, prank people, fool around, party in dorms and get drunk." Then he had a funny expression on his face, like he had eaten something sour, "Just don't kiss someone." There came the possessive man.

Tom started laughing at the statement.

Chapter Text

The next weeks went wonderfully for Tom, except for a few pests (students).

Theo helped him in maintaining his rule over the Slytherin House. Tom had also accepted him as a friend. (It was a new concept for him) It felt good to have a friend.

Snape's and Dumbledore's behavior also changed since the news.
They hated him even more now.

Fortunately, Snape, who was informed by one of the Prefects about his status as the Prince, could not do anything directly to him now. Because if he did, Tom could advise the Slytherins to just not listen to Snape. Plus, due to his and Harry's Lordship, the man could lose his job. It worked as a wonderful leash.

Unfortunately, he could not do the same for Dumbledore. The man had too much influence over magical Britain and sacking him will throw the two of them in a bad light.

Theo had also received a letter from his father congratulating him for getting into the Court. There were also many subtle remarks to get closer to the halfblood Lord and use him.

Theo only sneered at the letter and burned it.

In mid-February, Harry had asked him whether he would like to go on one more date the next day. Tom accepted.
To his chagrin, Harry had asked him about it in front of Theo, who teased him mercilessly after that. The Professor only smirked at him whenever he glared at the man.

On Valentine's Day, Harry took him on the date. To Paris.

Tom had thought they would be going to some restaurant and places in London only. Not Paris.

He looked around the place in awe and wonder. He was truly here.

(He'd seen the picture of the Eiffel Tower when he was seven. From then, he had dreamed of visiting Paris.)

"This place is beautiful."

"Yes, sweet. Come on now, let's walk around in the city." He then pulled a blushing Tom towards him to explore the city.

The two of them visited numerous places during the whole day. Both the Muggle and Magical places. Though they hated muggles, they could not dismiss the beautiful works done by them.

Tom also discovered that Harry could speak both French and English in that accent. And damn, it was hot.

After seeing his reaction to hearing the man speak like that, Harry purposefully spoke in the accent their whole trip. He actually enjoyed speaking French. His godfather had started living in France after Harry graduated from Ilvermorny and he had visited this place many times ever since. Now an added benifit, seeing Tom's blush was a cherry on the top.

"Let's take a picture, Harry!" Tom suggested.

There were many photographers moving around there, both magical and muggle.

When they returned to Hogwarts, both of them had sweet memories of the city and many photographs of their visit.

"I know Professor Peverell looks hot, Tom. But for Merlin's sake, stop ogling at the picture!" Theo exclaimed the next morning. They were already late for breakfast.

The same day, Theo asked the Greengrass sisters, Montague and Pucey to meet them in his room after dinner.

The Greengrass' immediately understood what they were called for, but Montague and Pucey started wondering whether they were going to be punished. For what, neither of them knew.

The four of them were anxious the whole day.

Tom was too, if he was being honest to himself. These might be his future Court members. From the day when Theo had told him about them, he'd kept an eye on the four. And true to Theo's words, the four were very useful.

The six of them were gathered in Theo's dorm.

"Good evening, Misses Greengrass, Montague, Pucey. Please take a seat." He nodded to each one of them.

"Good evening, Riddle." The four said together, sitting on the bed.

Slytherins, like the rest of the school had to share dorms. According to the rules. They modified it, slightly.

Those who were able to make rooms for themselves within the dorms had their own rooms which were large enough for a single person. Those who could not, they were stuck with sharing dorms. 

Theo, obviously, had his own room. A four poster bed was near the window, a study table and side table beside it. Opposite to the bed was the wardrobe with the door to the bathroom beside it.

Tom was sitting on the chair near the study desk.

"I called you four here to offer a chance to join my Court." He said bluntly.

Montague and Pucey looked surprised whereas the Greengrass sisters had careful blank faces.

"What are your goals, Riddle?" Daphne asked.

"My goals? What do you mean, in school or politics in general?"

"Both."

"For school, I want to alleviate the Slytherin name. For generations people have hated my house. I don't want the Slytherins to become kind-hearted Hufflepuffs, but to at least appear to be decent. For politics, I want to bring back the old traditions, to make dark arts legal, amend Britain's relations with the other countries and crush Dumbledore." He ended darkly.

It was no secret that the Slytherins hated Dumbledore. The biased old bastard.

"How do you plan to gain the support of the purebloods? Even if you're Lord Slytherin, you're still a halfblood." Astoria pointed out.

"Because they'll need me. Dumbledore's influence grew further in the Wizengamot every day. The dark families are scorned by the rest of Britain. He also has authority over the students of Hogwarts. It wouldn't be long before dark wizards will be hunted just for practising even the most harmless spells. With the rise of the new Dark Lord, the people are more scared of dark wizards. I've heard that Dumbledore wants to raid the properties of the dark families, especially the purebloods, in Britain and also wants to do regular checks on our wands. And why, because he is suspicious that we're aligned with Dark Lord Hades. The sad part is, he'll get whatever he wants on a silver platter and your hands will be tied."

He saw the surprise and dread on the faces of the four student's and Theo's too.

"Maybe your parents haven't told you about this yet, fearing it'll affect your studies. But while we sit here at Hogwarts, the old man's power in the Wizengamot grows. What the dark pureblood families need now is power and support, in the Wizengemot. Seats. Though the two sides have equal amount of seats, Dumbledore has influence. Plus for the magical creatures' seats, Goblins and Vampires don't bother with British politics, and the Veelas support Dumbledore. "

"But why will they need you?" Astoria asked.

"The Founders House has more influence than other Houses. Peverell House has more too. Both the sides have 48 seats now. If you add my and Hadrian's House seats, your side will gain 28 seats, which is incredible. It'll help your side a lot."
It was weird calling Harry as Hadrian, but alas, he had to. Harry absolutely hated being addressed as 'Harry' by anyone he wasn't close to. If he said the name 'Harry', there are chances that his Court would address the man with that name too.

"But why will the our families and the other purebloods follow you? Professor Peverell has 18 seats, whereas you only have 10. Our families could go directly to Lord Peverell rather than to you." Daphne said.

Tom smiled and said, "But you see, Hadrian has no interest in British politics. He is only teaching here because he's interested specifically in Hogwarts. If the laws regarding dark wizards change, he'll simply leave the country and take me along with him." Until he conquers Britain as the Dark Lord.

"Wait! Professor Peverell practices Dark Arts?" Pucey asked, bewildered.

Raising an eyebrow, he replied, "Everyone knows he has five masteries. But very few know what subjects they are on. Dark Arts is one of them."

The five students looked stunned at that. The son of the vanquisher of the Dark Lord Grindelwald had a mastery in Dark Arts? It was bound to ignite outrage and surprise if the word got out.

They tried to get more out of him about Harry, but he just gave them vague answers.

After that, they discussed more on his policies and rule on the Slytherin House.

It  took a bit of convincing for Pucey's to have a neutral view on Muggleborns.

At the end, Tom thought the meeting was a success. They were given five days to contemplate on the matter. The four left the room after that.

"Theo, if you were any less subtle at staring at Greengrass, I swear she'd have cursed you into the next week." He said, snickering at the adoring look on Theo's face as he stared at the place were the elder Greengrass was sitting.

It earned him a pillow thrown at his face.

Chapter Text

Five days later, on 21st February, the four Slytherins had accepted the offer to join the Court. They'd decided to announce it the next day to the rest of the House.

Most of the students accepted them without any hesitation, except a few who were jealous or still did not like the fact that a halfblood was ruling them.

From that day, the six of them, Tom, Theo, Daphne, Astoria, Graham and Adrian, stuck together.

Every student could see the change in Tom Riddle. Gone was the lone, quiet boy. Instead, now they saw a confident, smart, handsome young Lord.

Yes, there were some people who had tried to flirt with Tom. Keyword being tried. Harry seemed to have grown some sort of sixth sense because whenever someone attempted to flirt with him, Harry would appear out of nowhere and give the student a week's detention and deduct House points. Even when he had his own classes.

It only made the Court tease Tom relentlessly on having a "possessive boyfriend". The new four warmed up to each other quite quickly,

Having a close group of friends also helped Tom to avoid Snape's ire and Dumbledore's questioning.

On 27th February, a Saturday, the six of them made their way towards Harry's quarters, after the breakfast. The Professor had asked Tom to bring his friends with him that day, to get to know them.

His friends were excited to meet Hadrian Peverell outside the class.

"Enter."

The group entered the classroom.

Harry was leaning on his table, welcoming them with a smile. He was wearing a dark crimson coat with a black shirt and slacks.
"Good morning."

"Good morning, sir."

"Please, call me Hadrian."

Each one of them, except Tom, extended the same courtesy.

Harry led them in his office, which Tom noticed was changed a bit.

Harry's desk was still in the room, though it was shifted in a corner. In the center, there were three couches and a coffee table.

Harry sat on one double-seat couch, gesturing Tom to sit beside him. Tom complied happily.

Astoria, Daphne and Theo took one of the couches and Adrian and Graham the last one.

As soon as they sat, snacks and drinks were served on the coffee table, no doubt by a house-elf.

"I'm really delighted to meet you all. Tom speaks a lot about all of you." Harry said, smiling charmingly.

"We can say the same about you, Hadrian. Honestly, once he starts, Tom does not stop speaking about you." Adrian said, smirking in Tom's direction.

"Hey! I don't do that."

"Oh come on Tom, remember yesterday morning when I'd to literally pull you out of your dorm when you were busy staring at the picture of the two of you." Theo added teasingly.

"Or the time when Tori had whacked you with a spoon during lunch when you were observing him." Daphne said.

"Or the day when you became the Prince and declared Hadrian as- ow! Hey!" Astoria exclaimed, stopping mid-sentence.

Tom, who had hit her with a mild stinging hex, was red-faced with embarrassment and was staring at the faces of his friends- traitors- in disbelief.
(He did not want Harry to know what Astoria was going to say)

Harry, who was chuckling at his situation, said, "I'm flattered, sweet. And as much as I would like to hear about Tom staring at me, let's give him a break." He said grinning at his friends and put an arm around his shoulders.

Tom forced himself not to blush. He was their leader, damn it! He was not supposed to look like a blushing teenager!

From then, they talked about different subjects, their hobbies and Harry told them about Ilvermorny.

Out of every student, except Tom, Adrian looked the most at ease whenever he talked to Harry. Maybe it was simply because he was the only one closest to Harry's age. And like Harry, Adrian was good at politics.
(Honestly, Tom thought the two were eerily similar. Even their names were nearly the same!)

Theo and Harry shared the same love for books. He saw the excited look in Theo's eyes when Harry started talking about magical literature.
(They were all surprised to know that it was an actual subject taught at Ilvermorny.)

Astoria, Daphne and Harry had the same passion when defending magical creatures.
(One of the sister's distant cousins, who also happened to be their favorite, was a werewolf. The prejudice their cousin faced angered the whole family.)

Graham was the scholar of the group, along with Tom, so he and Harry talked a lot about many different subjects.
When the two started talking about something on ancient runes, the rest of them did not understand a word of what Graham and Harry were talking about, despite the fact that everyone had taken the subject.

Tom could confidently say that Harry liked his choice of friends.

They spent at least three hours in his room, talking and joking about many different things, before the most interesting thing of the day happened.

When they were discussing about Quodpot, Harry suddenly stiffened and then they heard a knock on the class room's door. Only Tom saw the crazy smirk on Harry's face before he went outside the office.

'Who do you think it is?" Graham asked.

"I don't know. Normally, if any student needs his help, they come after lunch."
Tom replied.

The door opened once again and Harry entered with the last person Tom, or anyone else in the room for that matter, wanted to see.

Albus was not having a good day.

Truthfully, his life was not good from the day he discovered that Hadrian Peverell, the stupid brat, was in a courtship with Tom bloody Riddle. He wanted to curse both of them the moment he had read the article!

If it wasn't enough, Peverell had somehow managed to take Riddle to Gringotts and the devil got his Inheritance. Lord Slytherin!

And the people did not think twice upon that fact. They did not mind that Riddle was a descendant of a family full of dark wizards. What the idiots thought was more important that Peverell was dating him! (Not that Albus liked the fact either)

Albus thought that trying to talk with Peverell would be a good start to separate the two. He'd tell the boy about Riddle's crimes at the orphanage, about his mingling with dark arts and how the boy reminded him of Gellert.

He knew Harry respected his dead parents a lot. From various people, he had heard that the boy visited his parents' graves on every Halloween. He was also said to have a large muggle portrait of his parents in his manor. His family was light, the boy would never betray his parents' memory.

So, Albus intended to use his obvious love for his parents to distance the boy from Riddle. Who knew what the dark wizard was planning to do with the boy.
Peverell was a naive boy, always speaking about equality of magic. He must have never seen the evils of dark magic.

Albus wondered how Riddle managed to ensnare the boy. Was something like love potion or the imperious curse involved?

The Transfiguration Professor had tried to talk to Peverell whenever he had a chance. But he failed.

The boy would vanish from the Great Hall before he could talk to him. Even there, he always sat at the end of the table, near the Slytherin table.
Even when he managed to find the boy in the corridors, students were always surrounding him. Finding the boy alone was impossible.

Riddle too had managed to become the Slytherin Prince somehow. Albus could not do anything but watch the devil boy from afar. The brat had also managed to get Court members. The best students in the Slytherin House.

Theodore Nott, son of Thaddeus Nott, a notorious dark wizard and blood supremacist. There were rumors that Nott Sr. had supported Gellert during his reign.

Daphne and Astoria Greengrass, daughters of Hyperion and Aurora Greengrass. The family, though neutral, was well-known for defending the filthy dark creatures. Both the girls were talented and powerful.

Graham Montague, son of Atticus Montague, again a dark wizard. The boy was a genius, a dangerous genius. He was also known to be the best dueler of Hogwarts. The boy was trusted and respected a lot by the students. The Gryffindors included.

And Adrian Pucey. The boy gave him creeps. He had somehow even managed to persuade him, to give the boy a permission slip to enter the restricted section of the library, one he did not give anyone except Gryffindors and some Hufflepuffs. And the boy had been only fourteen then! To this day, Albus was embarrassed by the fact. He knew the boy had scary persuasion skills and was aiming to become a politician. It would not do. If the boy got power.... Albus shuddered to think of the results.

And now the five of them followed Riddle.

Albus hated it.

It was the reason why he was now standing in front of the DADA classroom, instead of enjoying the weekend.

He had to talk to the boy.

He knocked the door, praying to Merlin, to make the boy understand him.

Chapter Text

Harry smirked as Dumbledore's face soured when the old man noticed his darling and his friends. The same could be said for the students too.

"I hadn't known you had guests, my boy." Dumbledore started.

"Oh yes, it was supposed to be a secret. You can't imagine the number of students disturbing our private time just out of spite." Laughing, he continued, "And please don't call me 'my boy', Albus. Makes me feel like a teenager. How can I help you, by the way?"

Dumbledore smiled tightly at him and said, "Actually, I wanted to speak to you. Privately, if you will."

Tom looked unhappy at that, but Harry nodded, "Why don't we go back to the classroom then?"
He'll not let the old man taint his quarters with his unwanted presence.

"Tom, dear, if you want anything, just call an elf. I'll be back."

With that, he followed Dumbledore outside.

"So, sir, what did you want to talk about?" He asked, politely.

"Actually, it's about Mr. Riddle."

"What about Tom?"

"The boy.... I'm worried about you, Hadrian."

"What is it?" He asked, looking curious.

"You know right that your parents fought against dark wizards?"

Harry stiffened minutely but kept on his polite face.

"I know that."

"Then I hope that Mr. Riddle has told you about him being a dark Wizard?"
He saw the triumphant gleam in the old man's eyes, no doubt thinking he won.

Harry kept a blank face for some moments before relaxing his stance with a lazy smile coming over his face.

"Oh yes, I know that."

Dumbledore looked surprised for a second before he asked, looking concerned, "And you don't mind it?"

"Of course not. You know me, Albus. I support equality of all magic. Tom's magical affinity does not bother me."

"I know that, my boy. But I have heard some bad things about Mr. Riddle from the matron of his orphanage. He used to terrorize the children there. Hurt them badly."

Harry frowned at the man, controlling his anger, "You yourself said that these were the words of the matron. You've not seen him do it himself. Moreover, you shouldn't tell me about his personal life without his permission, Albus. I had hoped that you knew better than that."

Dumbledore looked frustrated at his words and spit out, "Do you even know the evils of dark magic, Hadrian?"

"I know enough." He looked ready to argue with the man. "And I am not having that conversation right now."

"No you don't. Do you know that your beloved partner is planning to tear down his own soul?"

Harry stopped. "What?"

"Mr. Riddle is planning to make a horcrux, Hadrian."

Harry paled at the word. 'No, the man is lying. He is ly-'

"You know about horcruxes." It was a statement. Suspicion was evident in the old man's voice.

'Of course  I   know   what  horcruxes are.  I'm  the Dark Lord.'

"I read about them in my father's journal. How he, along with you, had hunted them down and destroyed Grindelwald's horcruxes."

"Hmm." The man looked unsettled by the fact.

"What proof do you have, Albus?" He asked, suddenly quiet.

"I am the one who manages the wards around Hogwarts. Whenever a dark artefact or anything with dark magic enters the wards, I know about it and what the thing is. From the start of the term, I'd known that Mr. Riddle was carrying 'Magick Moste Evil'. It's a book with the darkest practised written down in it. Horcruxes being one of them. Also, during Professor Slughorn's Yule party, Mr. Riddle had asked him about horcruxes."

Harry felt his anger rise with every sentence the man said.
'Surely Tom isn't that stupid.'

"Why didn't you tell anyone about it? Or you could've simply confiscated the book."

"I didn't tell anyone because if this got out, Mr. Riddle would've been expelled from Hogwarts and gotten his wand snapped. And I do not wish that fate on any child." The man said like he genuinely cared for Tom.

And he did not answer his second question. The man wanted Tom to read the book!

Taking a deep breath, Harry managed to speak calmly rather than snapping at the man, "I'm tired, Albus. I don't want to speak about it now."

Dumbledore once again had the triumphant gleam in his eyes, before he nodded sympathetically at him and left the classroom.

Harry waited for a few minutes in the class after the man left, to calm himself down.

The Invisibility Cloak materialized over his shoulders and he left the room, silently.

Harry stood in front of the entrance of the Slytherin Common Room.

He did not have the time to wait for someone to come and open the door with the password.

Just as he decided to simply blast off the door, he heard Death's voice in his mind.

《  Use  parseltongue, Harry. 》

With that, Death's presence left his mind.

He cursed himself for his stupidity. This rage was making him mad!

Taking some calming breaths, he waited for some minutes before making sure that nobody was present in the corridor.

"Open."

The door opened and he went inside.
Luckily, no one was present inside.

Raising his wand, he spoke, "Point me Tom Riddle's room."

Tom's room was as neat as the boy himself. Not a single parchment out of place.

If he wasn't in such a bad mood, he might've enjoyed the sight of the room more.

Releasing his hold on his magic, he searched for the presence of the dark book.
Within seconds, he found it. His darling was clever enough to place strong wards around it. His momentary pride vanished when he remembered the reason for his visit.

The wards were nothing for him. He'd broken and went around stronger ones.

The book was lying innocently inside the drawer, as if it wasn't the cause of his rage.

He opened the page with a bookmark and almost burned the book.

Horcruxes.

Mad, blind rage filled him.

"That stupid boy!"

He knew he had to get out lest he kill someone.

Throwing the book back in its place, he went back outside, slamming the door behind him.

The Room of Requirements was the perfect place to vent his anger. Placing some wards around the room to prevent the detection of the use of dark magic, he threw the most dangerous curses he knew at the training dummies, his magic swirling wildly around him.

Two hours had passed since Harry had left the room.

Tom was starting to get worried. What happened?

Even his friends started to get restless now. They had even checked the classroom half-an-hour after Harry had left. But the man wasn't there.

Luckily for him, Serene had visited them and kept his friends entertained.

When it was time for lunch, they left the room.

Harry wasn't even in the Great Hall.

But Tom saw that Dumbledore looked smug.

After lunch, Tom separated from his friends, "I'm going back to Hadrian's room. You all go and enjoy the day."

They looked concerned but listened to him.

An hour later, Harry stalked back into the room, looking tired and angry. His hair was a mess and he was sweaty all over.

"Where were you?" Were the first words which came out of his mouth. He winced internally, the words were sharp and accusing.

Harry sneered at him, which shocked him. The way him spoke gave him chills. "Nowhere that concerns you."

It hurt and angered him, so he let the anger control him.
"Really!? You asked me to bring my friends here today and then you vanish without a word!"

Harry's body was shaking with restrained fury and he spat, "Leave me alone, Tom. I don't want to speak with you right now."

"No! Tell me what happened."

Suddenly, he was slammed into the wall and he saw Harry glaring at him.

"What happened? Let me tell you what happened, Tom Riddle. You plan to tear your soul. And you did not even think to inform me about this! How can you be so stupid!?" He hissed at him.

His eyes widened and he froze. How did he know?

But he would not let himself cower, he never had.

"Why do  you  care? Aren't Dark Lords supposed to advocate  the  use  of dark magic?"

"Yes, Tom, I   support dark magic. But what you plan to do  is something even  I   wouldn't  delve into."

"Why? Are you scared?" He taunted.

Harry's eyes were furious now.
"Scared? I'm not scared, you fool. I'm wise enough not to do something so dumb. Do you even know what happens when you make a horcrux!? Let me tell you, Tom. It tears your soul into half. Half of your soul will live free and the other in confinement. The soul inside that horcrux will become bitter and insane by the loneliness. And it will resonate on your soul! Slowly, gradually, you'll become bitter and paranoid, you'll want to make one more horcrux. And when you do, the urge increases. Slowly, only a fraction of your soul will be left in your body and you will become an insane, thoughtless creature!"

Tom saw a flicker of some emotion pass in Harry's eyes before he continued, "Your mind, magic, body and soul will deteriorate. AND YOU DIDN'T EVEN PLAN TO TELL ME!"

Tom felt a stab of guilt when Harry stopped speaking. It was true, he did not plan to tell anyone about it, Harry included.

He did not know the consequences of making a horcrux. He thought that just a piece of his soul will leave his body and he'll live forever. He felt foolish for not reading in-depth on the subject.

Quietly, he said, "I don't want to die. I'm scared of it."

All the rage seemed to drain out of Harry and the man sighed. Loosening his grip on Tom, he said, "And I swear on my magic that you'll not die, Tom."

He looked at the other man, surprised. Swearing on magic wasn't something done freely.

"But I want you to swear on never making a horcrux." Harry added.

Tom was ready to argue when Harry tightened his grip on his shoulders again and spoke in a threatening voice, "Did I not just promise you immortality, Tom? I swear that you won't die. Remember, before you accepted the courtship, I warned you that I'll not let you leave me. I don't want to live with the paranoia that one day my partner will do something so foolish and lose his sanity. If you don't swear now, I'll make you."

Tom felt angry and helpless. Even though he was powerful, he was no match for Harry.

Seething, he spat the words for the magical oath.

As soon as Harry released him, he made his way towards the door.

"Tom, listen-"

His words were cut-off by the slamming of the door.

The Slytherin left the DADA room angrily.

Chapter Text

For two weeks, Tom kept ignoring Harry.

During classes, he made sure not to make eye contact with the man. He had not even attended their weekly meet-ups.

Every student had caught on the fact that something had happened between the two.

At first, his friends tried to find out what was wrong, but left the attempt after seeing that his mood got worse whenever Harry's name was brought up.

He would snap and curse the people who even said the man's name near him.
(Some said that he acted like Snape, whenever the Defence Professor's name was mentioned)

Harry, on the other hand, acted like nothing was wrong. The man laughed and smiled politely at everyone. He had heard that once when a second-year Gryffindor asked what happened between him and his partner, the man only smiled and said, "Nothing huge, Logan. He's a bit stressed out."

It annoyed Tom.

Here he was, hurt, angry, embarassed, guilty and confused, but Harry just smiles at everyone and says 'he's stressed' !?.

His friends gave him subtle hints to talk to Harry but he brushed them aside.

Like right now. He, Theo and Daphne were working on their Herbology homework when Daphne started.

"Tom, you should talk to Professor Peverell."

Irritated, he ignored the girl.

"Tom, I really think you should do so. Have you seen how tired he looks nowadays?" It was Theo who said it.

The Slytherin Prince looked sharply at him. 'What does he mean by tired?'

"I'm going to the library to find some reference books. And I don't want company." He said.

With that, he went to the library.

He was taking notes from the 'Magical Mediterranean Water Plants and their species', when he felt a hand on his shoulder.

Tensing slightly, he looked behind.

Druella Rosier.

He turned around completely to shrug off the hand and spoke, "How can I help you, Miss Rosier?"

"Hello, Tom. I just wanted to talk with you, nothing else." She said, giving him a saccharine smile.

Giving her a fake but polite smile, he said, "I'm doing my work actually. Maybe we can talk la-"

"But Tomm, I've wanted to talk to you alone for so many years."

"We are in the same house."

Ignoring him, she continued, "When you came out as Lord Slytherin, I was so happy. You're a dark wizard! And from an ancient house too. Do you know I'm the best dark witch in my house?"

Alarmed,he looked around to see whether someone heard the foolish girl. Luckily, the library was empty. Seething, he hissed at the girl, "Don't shout that fact, idiot!"

He was still ignored.

"-and then how you defeated Abraxas, it was amazing! But that stupid Peverell got you before me!"

"Shut up!" He yelled angrily at her.
How dare she call Harry stupid!?

Wide-eyed, the girl stared at him for some moments, before the sickly sweet smile came back on her face.

Suddenly, he was pushed back, two hands holding his shoulders tightly.
The girl was too close to him now.

"No! Get off me!"

"I know something happened between you and Peverell. You are have been stressed for two weeks. I can help you with that." She smiled seductively at him.

It would've worked on someone who was willing.

No means no.

"Get awa-"

"Miss Rosier, please get away from my partner immediately."

Hearing Harry's voice made him relax. Though he stiffened again immediately.
The position he and Rosier were in did not look good. Oh Merlin, what if Harry thoug-

Rosier did not move away. In fact, she shifted closer to him. "We are just talking, Proffesor."

Tom was unable to move. Harry, on the other hand, waved his wand and Rosier was pulled away from him. "I'm not a fool to not know the difference between talking and molesting, Miss Rosier. I fear you will be facing expulsion for this."

The girl snarled and pulled out her wand, pointing it at Harry.
"You wouldn't dare to! You don't have the power to do it."

"You'll be surprised by my power, Miss Rosier. Go back to the dorms or you will be meeting your parents tomorrow. Surely you don't want them to know that their betrothed daughter was forcing herself on someone unwilling?"

Before the witch could embarrass herself more, one more voice was heard.

"Druella, let's go back to the dorms." Evan Rosier, her younger brother stepped into the library.

Glaring at Harry and Evan, the witch stomped out of the library.

"I apologize for her behavior, sir. I'll make sure mother and father know about this." Evan said, shame evident on his face.

Nodding at the boy, Harry said, "Thank you, Mr. Rosier. Please tell them that if this ever occurs again, she will be facing charges."

"Yes, sir." With that, the boy left them too.

Harry's face remained indifferent the whole time.

Tom opened his mouth to say something. What, he did not know.

Luckily for him, the Professor spoke first.
"Tom, I want to talk to you."

He waited for him to say something more, but Harry remained quiet. Unsure, he asked, "Well?"

Sighing, the man said, "In my room."

"Oh. Yes. Yes. Uh, just let me pack my stuff."

Coming back to Harry's room felt nice. Until now, he did not realize just how much he missed the room.

Harry sat at their usual place on the couch, finally a hint of emotion on his expressionless face. He was nervous.

Tom sat beside him, hesitation clear on his face.

Clearing his throat, the Professor started, "Tom, I want to apologize for my behavior two weeks ago. I should have a better control on my anger."

"Oh. I'm sorry too, you know. I re-read the chapter on the ho- them, and the book did not say what happened after you created it. I realized that it was foolish of me to even think about going ahead with my plan without having the full knowledge about it."

Harry looked surprised at him.
"Um yes. But still, I shouldn't have lashed out at you that day."

His face held so much regret that Tom couldn't help himself. He leaned towards him and took hold of his hands.
"Hey, I understand. We both could have handled the situation differently. We were both being idiots."

Harry smiled faintly at him before he stood up and said, "Well, there is something I need to tell you."

"What is it?" He asked curiously.

"I promised you immortality, didn't I?" Harry replied, already making his way inside his bedroom.

As he came back, Tom asked, "Don't tell me you carry something like the philosopher's stone in your briefcase?"

"Flamel's invention? No. Read this."
He said, holding an old looking book. He had already opened the book and handed it to Tom.

'The Tale of the Three Brothers'

Tom closed the book. Well, the story was decent. Meeting death and his getting gifts from him.

Harry was looking expectantly at him, "Well, what do you think?"

"It's a nice story." He said, confused as to why the man was making him read a children's book. There was an excited gleam in his eyes. "Though a bit childish, in my opinion."

"Yes, I know that. What do you think about the Master of Death?"

Bewildered, he replied, "It's too far-fetched, don't you think so? I mean, if it were real, it would be cool, but that isn't the case. Death as an entity, a resurrection stone and an unbeatable wand? That's just too good to be true."

As soon as he stopped talking, he noticed Harry's face.

The man was looking too smug and gleeful, it made him a bit apprehensive.

"Harry?"

At that moment, three things materialized in front of him, floating in the air.

Startled, Tom leaned back and he looked at the three objects.

A cloak, a wand and a stone.

"The Deathly Hallows." Harry whispered in his ears.

"You're pulling my leg, right?"

Harry said nothing. Tom just felt his breath on the side of his face.

He was too stunned to notice the closeness.

The attack on the DOM. Grindelwald's wand. The message. The deathly presence. Reapers. It all made sense.

"The three brothers in the stories. They were the Peverell brothers, Antioch, Cadmus and Ignotus. Death is an entity, Tom, and those three had met them. The story is the reason why the Peverells went into hiding. After the two brothers died, the Hallows became well-known. Everyone wanted them. Greedy bastards. They killed anyone with the Peverell blood for the Hallows. When the Peverells disappeared, the truth became legend. Not many people know that the legend is true. It amuses me a lot."

Tom turned to look at Harry.  He looked excited and proud.

"You- you've met Death?" He asked incredulously. Death had always been something unknown to him. Like being forgotten forever.

"Yes."

He looked at the other man, jaw hanging open.

Leaning back, Harry took out something from his jacket's inner pocket.

It was a locket. With the Dark Lord's symbol.

"What does this symbol mean?" He'd never asked Harry about it.

"It's the symbol of the Deathly Hallows. The triangle represents the Invisibility Cloak; the circle- the Resurrection Stone and the straight line represents the Elder Wand."

Moving closer to him, Harry put the locket on him.

"The locket cannot be seen by anyone except the both of us and my Reapers. It has various protection charms on it and it a portkey. If it senses that you're in danger, it'll take you to my manor or the headquarters. It is my symbol because if it takes to the headquarters, the Reapers will be there. When they see this on you, they'll never hurt you."

"Oh. Thank you so much." But why was Harry giving this to him?

Sighing, he said, "I promised you immortality, Tom. One requirement to become the Master of Death is to have a life patner of a kind. Death told me to choose one when I first met them. And then I met you. But for you to become immortal, we have to bond by doing a very old ritual, which will tie our souls forever. Though we'll have to wait for a year or more. You're still young. But there are chances that someone can kill you." Tom paled at the thought. "That's why I gave you this locket." 

"Oh. Wait, did you make it after we... fought?" He asked in disbelief. It will take more than two weeks to add so many charms, spells and runes on any object.

"Yes. I thought it'll put your mind at ease for the time being." Harry said simply.

Tom remembered Theo saying how tired Harry looked for two weeks.  Already, he was busy with grading papers, taking classes, the whole Dark Lord stuff and managing his house duties (Slytherin House too). On the top of that he spent time making something to make him feel safe and what did he do? Ignore him. Guilt hit him hard.

"I'm so sorry!" He blurted. "You were doing so much for me and I was just-"

Harry pulled him in his lap and hugged him tightly.
"Being a human. You are a human and teenager, Tom. Being angry and not talking to someone is something that everyone does. Give yourself a break, sweet. You should've seen me during my school days. I wouldn't talk to people for months if I got angry. It's okay to be sad, darling."

Relaxing slightly against him, he closed his eyes. He had missed Harry so much for the last two weeks.

"Ah. Look on the bright side," Harry said suddenly, "I've you sitting in my lap today."

Realizing his position, Tom reddened immediately.

At least he got to hear Harry's laugh.

Chapter Text

The days after Harry had given him the locket passed smoothly.

The friendship between the Court members strengthened. The group had become famous in Hogwarts. The teachers adored their group.

Snape and Dumbledore were being their usual biased self.

There was one attempt from some fourth year students to take his place as the Slytherin Prince, but Tom had put them in his place.

True to his words, Tom and his Court did not let any student laze around during the exams.
Not being the best was acceptable, but not even trying wasn't.

Now, every student was sitting in the Great Hall for the Leaving Feast.
It was Ravenclaw who won the House Cup.

Tom was sitting peacefully on his seat, enjoying the jokes and gossip shared by his friends.

His gaze travelled to the teacher's table.

Harry was engaged in a deep discussion with their ancient runes professor.

The man was in deep blue and bronze robes, as honour to Ravenclaw's win.
Tom swore that the man held some sort of fondness for the house.

His gaze shifted from Harry and landed on Dumbledore.

The man was glaring venomously at him.

Looking down at his plate, Tom hid his smirk.

From what Harry had told him, the man almost threw a fit when he got to know that Tom was not going back to the orphanage in the muggle world, but was staying with Harry for the summer.

Though Harry had told him not to take the matter lightly. There was a reason why the man wanted him to stay with the muggles.

Inheritance was their best guess.

They had decided that Tom would take the train to the King's Cross and from there, Harry would pick him.

Headmaster Dippet gave his usual speech and bid them goodbye.

He was excited for the next day. He was finally going to spend his summers in the wizarding world, on the top of that, with Harry too!

Sitting with people on the train was really different. A good different.

Every year during the train ride to and from Hogwarts, he'd sit alone in a compartment, fearful and dreading of the summer.

But this time it was different. He was happy. Elated. Looking forward for to the summer vacation.

"So tell me, Tom, what are you and Mr. Hottie going to do this summer?" Astoria asked with a grin.

Glaring slightly at the girl, which was kind of ineffective with the blush on his face, he said, "We haven't decided much. Though he promised to teach me about the house duties and somedark Magic." Seeing the exasparation on their faces, he added, "He said something about dates and a ball too."

"Ahh! Dates and balls! A perfect way to spend the vacation. Which ball was he talking about? Please tell me it is the Annual International Ministry Ball?"

"Yes. A Ministry Ball." Honestly, attending some ball, dancing and gossiping did not sound appealing to him at all.

"Merlin! That's great! It is an honor to attend that particular ball." She looked really excited and started bouncing on her seat.

Tom, who was seated beside her, shifted a bit away from the girl. After knowing her for months, he got to know one thing for sure. If Astoria starts getting really, really excited about something, get the hell away from her. He still shuddered remembering Astoria's one hour long speech on Celestina Warbeck's new song.

"Wait a minute. You're attending that ball?" Adrian asked, astonished.

Everyone now was looking at him with various degrees of shock and awe.

"Yes?" He said, confused. He knew that almost every pureblood child started attending balls from as young as from the age of seven. Why are they making such a fuss about this one?

Theo, bless his soul, answered his unasked question, "Only a few, and I mean really few, people from around the world are invited to that ball, Tom. Do you remember Malfoy bragging about his brother being invited to an important ball two years ago?" At his nod, Theo continued, "It was that one. It is not only a place to make really good connections, but also for the knowledge you gain. Scholars, researchers, Unspeakables, royals, just name them, people like those are mostly invited."

Adrian smirked and said, "Even Dumbledore, for being called as the greatest wizard", here each one of them rolled their eyes, "was only called thrice to that ball. Rumors are that he offended the dark witches and wizards, along with many magical beings, a lot during the three times he went. There wasn't a fourth then."

"Lord Peverell, Hadrian, has been invited every year since he was 17. He was the first underage person to attend the ball. Before him, the youngest one invited was a charms mistress at the age of twenty." Daphne explained.

"Okay. Wow." He said, slightly dazed. He did not know this. When Harry told him about it, he honestly thought it was some simple ball.

From then, his friends started telling him about the ball, who attended it, when and where it took place in the last five years and every bit of gossip about that ball.

As he bid his friends goodbye at the station, he noticed many purebloods observing him. Some were looking at him with disapproval and some with curiosity.

He went over to the muggle side of the station, where he was going to meet Harry.

As he stepped outside the station, he noticed many people staring, whispering and pointing in one particular direction. Following the crowd, he saw a sleek, black car.

The window at the driver's seat rolled down and the man sitting inside smirked at him.

It was Harry.

When the man had told him that he would be picking him up, Tom thought they were just going to apparate. He had not expected Harry to show up in a very expensive muggle car and looking very much like a muggle.

When the car honked, he came out of his bewildered state and made his way to the car.

The door of the passenger seat opened and Tom went in and sat inside.

"How?"

The man only smirked infuriatingly at him and said, "Well, I'm rich."

He gave Harry a bland look and said, "I know that! How do you have a muggle car?"

"I bought it." The man with an amused smirk.

"Harry." He said, exasperated.

Laughing at his disgruntled expression, Harry said, "Okay, okay, I'll tell you. Now you know that I don't actually like No-Maj's, but their inventions are pretty good. Like see this car, it's so cool. Or mobile phones, televisions, their transport system. These things are so useful. The people of the wizarding world, for all their self-proclaimed greatness, don't try to develop and innovate new things. Put on the seatbelt, darling." He started to drive at that.

"Do you know that I grew up in the No-Maj community?"

"No." Tom realized that he actually knew very little about Harry's childhood.

"Hmm. Like you, I too grew up in an orphanage." Harry's eyes were stuck on the road, so Tom wasn't able to see his eyes, but he thought his voice was bitter when he said that.

"What?" He asked incredulously.

A bitter smile came over his face and Harry answered, "Yes. Surprising, isn't it? The son of the Great James Peverell was left in an orphanage with the No-Majs."

They remained silent for a while.

"My experience with the No-Majs was similar to yours. In short, I was hated by everyone and was called the devil's child." Tom paled at that. "When my Potions Professor visited me, I was so happy. Finally, I was free from that damn place. Though unlike you, I did not have to go back to the place. Since the Peverell Lordship could only be accepted by someone fifteen or older, I could only visit the family manor. The magical law does not allow anyone underage, heir or not, to live without a guardian. The candidates on my test, out of them two were insane, one lost, one hated my very existence and other was a No-Maj. Luckily, Ilvermorny let's its students stay over at the school during summer."

"For a few years, I absolutely loathed anything to do with the non-magicals. But Ilvermorny's co-founder was a No-Maj. You cannot actually voice your hatred for the No-majs there. Even the pureblood supremacists could not speak against them. Slowly, my hatred for them lessened. It's still there, but not of the same intensity as it was before."

"Then I met Hermione Granger in my second year." A fond smile came over his face. Tom felt a bit jealous of whoever this Hermione was.

Sensing his jealousy, Harry grinned and said, "No need to feel jealous, darling. My heart only belongs to you." Tom blushed furiously at that.

(His "I'm not jealous" was ignored by a laughing Harry)

"Also, Hermione loves someone else." Tom secretly felt relieved at that.

"Moving on, Hermione's parents are No-Majs. And the girl is stubborn. First she managed to befriend me somehow, also made me befriend Ron, and changed my views on No-Majs a bit. Plus, during my third year, I met Sirius. The man liked to tinker with non-magical stuff. Winded me up with him. In the end, by graduation, they made me appreciate No-Maj stuff. And after graduation, me and my close friends went on a huge ass vacation in both the magical and non-magical world. And I met this beauty." He said, smiling affectionately at the steering wheel.

Tom blinked and shook his head. Sometimes, sometimes, he wondered whether he should be worrried about about Harry's behavior.

After some time, Harry announced, "Here we are, at Wool's orphanage."

Tom stared at the dusty old gates of the orphanage.

Chapter Text

Tom stared at the rusty old gates of the orphanage.

He heard Harry get out of the car and did the same. Harry was sneering slightly at the old building, no doubt, remembering his own experience.

Tom was surprised to know that Harry grew up like him. To know such a powerful and wealthy man was in such a place was astonishing and unbelievable.

Tom heard someone gasp from inside the gate. Following the sound, he saw two children from the orphanage looking at him wide-eyed and shocked. He remembered them, Beck and Daisy. They were twins, thirteen years old. They were brought by a police officer when the twins were three. They followed Amy and Dennis like lost puppies and were treated just the same.

He sneered at the two and saw them run back inside the building, no doubt to call everyone down.

He understood their shock though. He looked really different today. At least for them.

Even though he saved enough from the money  provided to him from the student's vault by the ministry, he only bought second-hand clothes for the muggle world. Today though, he was wearing expensive clothes made with the best materials available. A white shirt, dark brown pants and a dark green jacket. (He can't help it. Slytherin pride)

Harry, on the other hand, wore a formal suit in grey and white colors.

When they went inside the orphanage building, he saw Mrs. Cole sitting on her chair. She was glaring at him, not noticing Harry.
'She's a bit drunk. This is going to be fun.'

He saw the disgust and rage increase in Harry's eyes as he looked at the woman.

"You, boy! Came back from the freak school, didn't you? Go and clean your room, Riddle! Then you'll clean the toilets as punishment." This was her usual way of welcoming him.

"Punishment for what?" Harry asked, his voice promising violence. His entire demeanor radiated danger.

"For coming back! Why doesn't the devil's spawn just leave us?" She then seemed to notice Harry. Her entire body language changed. She gave him a sickly sweet smile and blushed a little (Tom felt very disturbed seeing that), she said, "And who are you, handsome young man?"

'Oh Merlin'
His face turned a bit green. The look she was giving him. Ugh!
She wasn't the only one. Every child was looking at him with various degrees of awe. Some older girls were also looking at him with obvious lust.

Harry sneered at her. Ignoring the matron completely, he turned to face Tom and said, "Please go and bring your things down, Tom." Looking at the matron, he added, "And please be fast, I can't stand this place."

Nodding, Tom made his way to his old room.

He heard a distant sound of, "Wait a minute, that boy-"

But he was already out of the hearing range.

As he entered his room, he closed the door behind and took a deep breath. His room was untouched as always. From what he had read, his accidental magic had created some sort of barrier around the room, which prevented others from entering his room uninvited. It was a blessing. His room was a safe haven for him.

Unfortunately, that meant his room wasn't cleaned even once during his time at Hogwarts.

For the last five years he came back from Hogwarts, he had to clean his room on his own. The matron ordered him to do so alone.

Honestly, he didn't have anything to take from his room.

Just a certain someone.

"Nagini." He hissed, crouching near his bed. It was Nagini's favourite place in the room.

One more advantage of no one entering his room was keeping Nagini safe.

A triangular head emerged from under the blankets, looking at him.
Huh, she was asleep.

He trailed one finger over her scales.
"Nagini"

Her eyes seemed to gain focus and she hissed happily, "Tommy! You're back!"

She then proceeded to coil her body around his shoulder and arms. Laughing slightly at her, he said, "Yes, I'm back. And there's good news, we are leaving!"

"Wait- we are leaving this place?" She asked, confused.

"Yes, Nagini."

"Where will we stay, Tommy?" She was concerned for her companion.

Blushing slightly, he said, "My partner has offered us his place to stay."

"You found a mate and did not even tell me!" She hissed.

"Hey! We met this year at Hogwarts. How was I supposed to tell you? Write you a letter?" He asked sarcastically. He loved Nagini, she was his only friend in the past. But Merlin, she could be really nosy!

Huffing slightly (how did a snake even do that? He never understood it), she grumbled, "I hope your mate can provide me with nice, juicy rabbits."

"Oh yes, he can." He told her smugly.

He had met Nagini when he was five.

Tom was wandering alone on the streets during the winters. Now walking alone on streets would be dangerous for small children, but only if someone cared for the child. Nobody cared for him.

He then noticed a middle-aged man sleeping in an abandoned alleyway.

Curious, he moved closer to the man. Several bags and cages were surrounding him.
Inside the cages, there were snakes and other reptiles.

It was only a year ago Tom had discovered that he could talk to snakes. He had talked to many snakes last year, and had developed a fondness for them.

Now, seeing them like this, caged and starved, made him angry.

Strange things happened around him. As soon as he got angry, the locks of the cages opened and the reptiles got out.

Tom noticed that the man was waking up, so he ran away.

The same night, when he was alone in his room, a small movement near his bed caught his attention.

Moving closer, he poked something and jumped away, scared.

A large, green snake was looking at him.

"Oh my God! How did you enter the room?"

"You can speak, human?" The snake hissed.

"Of course I can speak! I'm a boy. How can you speak English?" He asked, astonished.

" I'm   not   speaking the  human-tongue, little human.  You're  speaking the serpent's language."

"You're speaking English!" He said adamantly.

This continued for half-an-hour before the matron came to inform him about dinner.

Before the door opened, the snake went back under the covers.

"Riddle, come down for dinner."

"Yes, Mrs. Cole."
The poor boy did not realize that he was still speaking Parseltongue.

The matron heard the boy hissing and felt a bit scared. Then came the anger.
She slapped the little boy across his face and spat, "Stop your freakiness, boy! No dinner for you! If I ever again hear you hissing, I'll kill you!". With that, the woman left the room.

Cheeks stinging, Tom sat on the floor. He did not understand what he did! He did not want to be a freak!

He cried silently, alone on the floor.

The snake came out and slithered into his lap. Licking his cheek, it said, "The woman is vile. Don't blame yourself, hatchling."

Sniffling, Tom asked, "What does 'vile' mean?"

Tom listened to the snake tell him about the different 'vile' things it had seen.

Relaxing a bit, he asked, "What is your name?"

" I'm  Nagini. And  what  about you, little human?"

" I'm  Tom."

"Hmm. I shall call you Tommy."

"I don't   like  that name."

"Too late. And  I'll  be  living  with you."

That day, Tom met his first friend.

As he moved down, he noticed several things.

Harry's mood seemed to have improved, though he still looked ready to burn down the place.
The woman was nowhere to be found.

Maria was standing in the doorway, looking at Harry silently.

The children were all huddled together.

He saw Amy, Dennis, Billy and their group sitting in another corner. All of them were crying and staring at Harry with fear.

They cried even more when they noticed the huge snake hanging on his shoulders.

Harry looked at Nagini with appraisal before smiling and said, "Let's go."

As they sat inside the car, he put Nagini on his lap and asked, "What did you do while I was gone?"

"Oh. Nothing. Just called some of my acquaintances, got the bitch fired, made sure she is put in jail and threatened the little bullies about doing the same to them. Cursed them a bit, nothing noticeable. And, that woman will be rotting my dungeons as soon as she gets out of the No-Maj prison. You can torture her if you want." He said flippantly.

"By the way, she's beautiful." He said, pointing at Nagini.

"Yes she is." Tom said, laughing at Nagini's surprise when Harry spoke in Parseltongue.

"You're a speaker too!"

"Yes,  I am, miss."

"I approve of your mate, Tommy." She said, turning to him.

"Tommy?" Harry looked like a cat who got the canary.

Tom blushed furiously. First Nagini and now Harry.

"I was a child."

"You're still a hatchling." Nagini said. Turning to Harry, she continued, "And if you hurt Tommy, I'll bite you!"

"Point taken. I promise you that I'll not hurt him." He said seriously.

"And  I  want juicy rabbits."

"Yes." His lips were twitching.

"And  you'll  not mate with him until he  is old enough to mate."

Tom covered his face. He was going to die of embarrassment by the end of the summer.

Chapter Text

After driving for almost an hour, Harry stopped the car.

Looking out of the window, Tom saw that they were in some wizard-muggle residence area.

"Where are we?" He asked.

The gates opened on their own and Harry drove the car in.

"Godric's Hollow. Come on, sweet." Harry said, parking the car.

As he stepped outside, a house-elf appeared beside Harry and took their belongings.

"Won't the Muggles notice?" He asked Harry cautiously.

"No. There are wards around the house. For the No-Maj's, this place has been abandoned for the last twenty years. It's a complex ward. As soon as we entered from the gates, anyone who saw the car would forget about it."

"Wow. It's pretty useful."

"Yeah. It is."

He then shrunk the car and placed it inside a box in a suitcase.

Harry explained to him that he cannot portkey the car without taking the chances of damaging it. (Harry loved the car a lot.)
So, he shrunk and placed it in an indestructible box.

The house was lovely. It had three bedrooms, two guest rooms along with a spacious living room, a kitchen and a library. It seemed a mix between Gryffindor and Ravenclaw House. Or more like one of the partners loved red and gold too much but the other one tried to tone it down.

He also saw a framed picture of a family of three in the living room. The little boy was smiling a toothless grin at the camera. The parents were leaning on each other, their foreheads touching and were facing the camera. The little boy was in the center. His green eyes were looking happily at Tom.

And if he stared at the picture for too long, they did not talk about it.

The place was lovely, lively even. Though, it was filled with sad and bittersweet memories.

The duo had decided to have lunch at Godric's Hollow, rest there for some hours and then portkey to Harry's manor in the States.

Tom could not actually believe that Harry brought him here at Godric's Hollow. He usually avoided talking about his parents. Dumbledore was right about one thing, Harry loved his parents a lot.

After lunch, they were relaxing in the library.

"Tell me about your godfather and Moony." Tom asked. He wanted to know more about Harry.

"What brought this up?" Harry asked, amused.

"I'm bored." He nearly poured. Nearly.

Looking at him with amused green eyes, the man started, "I met Remus after my third year at Ilvermorny. As he was listed as a possible guardian for me, a letter was sent to him about the guardianship by Gringotts when I was eleven. Unfortunately at that time, Remus was with a werewolf clan and could not leave the place for a few years. In his letter, he explained how the werewolf did not allow any outside contact during their training months. After the incident on Halloween, he was lost. Emotionally. He lost his three friends that day. Or at least that's what he thought." A flash of rage flickered in his eyes. It was gone in a second. Tom did not know whether it was real or he imagined it.

"I was sent away before he could even see me. He was assured that I was safe wherever I was." He sneered at that.

"Moony then had nowhere to go. The British Ministry wasn't fond of werewolves. Left with no choice, he moved out from Britain spending the meagre amount of money he had left. On his travels, he came across Fenrir Greyback. The werewolf followed Grindelwald during the war at first. But then, after seeing how the madman treated his pack, they all left him and went neutral."

"Now understand, Tom, Fenrir wasn't a good person. He specifically targeted small children for his own sick entertainment and killed them after he was done. Everyone except Moony. He was saved before Greyback could kill him. You could say that made him Moony's kind of werewolf father or something. Basically, Fenrir was the Head of the werewolf clans and Remus was the Heir, by the werewolf laws."

"For many years, Fenrir tried to search for Remy, to kill him. He did not want anyone leading his pack. So, when they met after the end of the war, he tried to kill Remus. He that time was no match for Greyback. The older werewolf was trained to fight in his ways. But Remus had magic."

"After fighting for over two hours, they ceased it. Remus, in spite of hating Greyback so much, could not kill him. He could not kill anyone. And Greyback, he was impressed by Remus' will and magic. He offered Moony to train as the next head after him. Remus declined. He did not want to do anything with Greyback. But the older werewolf was adamant. He followed Remy everywhere, pestering him to join his clan."

"Three years later, Remy gave in. His curiosity won over the hatred. For the next three years, he trained under Greyback's guidance. The other werewolves hated him at first, but after seeing him train, fight and kill, they realized Remy was worthy. Remus himself changed a lot in those years. He accepted the werewolf side of him. He accepted that he was a predator, a hunter. He killed for his pack. He taught them magic, basic maths and more. Both Remy and the werewolves learned from one another. After Greyback's death eight years ago, Remy took over the pack as the head."

Tom was staring at Harry wide-eyed and jaw hanging open. He had met the head of the largest werewolf pack!

"Merlin." He whispered in awe. "Your uncle is the head of the biggest werewolf pack!"

Harry smirked at him and shrugged, "Yes."

"Don't tell me you know the vampire king too!" He meant it in a joking way.

Harry's smirk and the smugness in his eyes increased.

"Tell me you're joking." He said in disbelief.

The man only blinked innocently at him, though the look was destroyed with the smug smirk on his face.

"No way! Nobody has even seen them in the last 100 years!" He said incredulously.

"I thought you wanted me to tell you about Sirius and Remus."

Blushing slightly, he said, "Ah yes. Please continue."

Grinning, Harry continued, "So a year after Remy became the head, he sent me a letter. We met after the end of my second year at a restaurant in Sapphire Valley. At that time, he was a little apprehensive of meeting me. The Remus before Halloween and after it was very different. Plus, the British witches and wizards hated werewolves. He was surprised when I told him that I attended Ilvermorny instead of Hogwarts. A bit relieved too. Unlike British Ministry, the rest of the countries were not prejudiced against different magical beings. He was happy to know that I did not mind the fact that he was a werewolf. Truthfully, I was more amazed at that. I had a werewolf as an uncle. What could be cooler than that?" He said with a smirk.

"Though, at first, I was a bit angry at him. I spent eleven years thinking that I had no family and then one day out of the blue I got to know all that was false. But it's kind of impossible to hate Moony. After knowing what happened to him, I could not blame him for not looking out for me."

Suddenly, his eyes became sad and angry.

"Then he told me about Sirius. He was imprisoned in Azkaban for betraying my parents and killing a wizard and thirteen no-maj's."

"What!?" He did not know that.

Shaking his head, Harry continued, "That is what he was charged for. For that, I hated him. A part of me wanted to go inside Azkaban to torture and kill him slowly."

At his shocked look, the man shrugged unapologetically and said, "I was a violent kid."

"Anyways. Though Remy tried to tell me about how much Sirius loved my parents and how he couldn't betray them. At first, I was adamantly against anyone who said that Sirius could be innocent. I was angry. Angry that my parents died because of some traitor." The rage was evident in his eyes.

"But some people made me think about the possibility that Sirius Black could be innocent. Coincidentally, and fortunately, I came across a declared dead man. Peter Pettigrew." His eyes were furious and were like ice. The name was said with such hatred that Tom wondered whether the person was still dead or was still being tortured. He had a feeling that it was the latter case. "I had some of my acquaintances find his trial-scripts. Found none. Later got to know that he never had a trial. It took almost a year for him to get a trial. Fucking Ministry." He grumbled.

"Using veritaserum, he was proven to be guilty. The Ministry and Black family tried to keep him in London, but we brought him here. It took time to undo the damage done by Azkaban. Came to know later that Siri and Remy were dating before and then they got married when I was sixteen. Long story short, the two lived with me till my graduation and they live in France now. Became Reapers and helped me. Because of Remy, I have the biggest werewolf pack backing me up and Sirius helps me in inventing and developing stuff."

"Wow. That was great."

Chuckling, Harry said, "Yes it is."

A house-elf appeared in the room to inform them that their belongings were already portkeyed to the Peverell Manor.

"It's time to go, sweet."

International portkey was the worst form of magical transportation, Tom decided.

Chapter Text

International portkey was the worst form of magical transportation, Tom decided.

He puked, feeling dizzy.

It was a good thing that they did not portkey immediately after lunch.

Harry, who was holding him, cleaned up the mess.
"It's alright, sweet."

"I'm," he puked once more, "Oh Merlin, I'm so sorry." Tom felt extremely embarrassed. Here he was, puking his guts out and Harry looked unaffected by the portkey and his vomiting.

"It happens, Tom. This was your first time using an international portkey. I swear darling, this happens to everyone." Harry said, rubbing his back.

Tom relaxed a bit, but was still feeling dangerously dizzy.

Harry, who seemed to know what was happening, wrapped an arm around him and guided him to a bench.

'Where did it come from?' Tom wondered. 'Nevermind.' Sitting down, he focused on controlling his breathing and keeping the bile down.

He held his face with his hands and sat on the bench for nearly ten minutes.

Harry kept rubbing his back and arms the whole time. He called a house-elf and ordered him to bring a glass of water for Tom.

As he started to feel better, he looked up and said, "I'll never do that again."

Giving him the glass of water, Harry smiled and said, "Fine. We will take an airplane."

Grinning, Tom turned to look around and gasped.

The place was beautiful.

Surrounding them, there were many different trees, shrubs and flowers of various colors.
Faint sound of water could be heard, along with the chirping of birds. Tom swore that he saw a fairy flying near the bushes.

The place was magical.

In a distance, he could see the top portion of the manor.

"Wow." He whispered, amazed.

Harry smiled softly at him and said, "I'm glad that you like it."

Tom nodded absently, still looking around in wonder.

"Let's go inside. Rest today, I'll show you around tomorrow."

They walked on a stone path which led to the manor entrance.

On his way, Tom saw many fairies (he wasn't hallucinating), other magical and non-magical creatures. There was a literal forest behind the manor, according to Harry.

He explained that if one goes outside the wards, they'll only see a small Muggle mansion.

There were a number of fountains and pergolas here and there too.

The manor, which was huge, was in the centre of the garden.

The interior of the manor was equally impressive. Huge stone staircases, big paintings, wide, long windows, high ceilings, the place was heavenly.

When they entered a lounge room, Tom saw two people sitting inside already. They looked engaged in a serious game of cards, before they turned around and saw them.

One of them had shaggy black hair, an aristocratic face and cool grey eyes, along with a mischievous smile on his face which looked permanent.

The other man, with light brown hair, he recognized him as Remus.
'The werewolf head.'

It didn't take a genius to know that the other man was the infamous Lord Noir, Sirius Black.

"Prongslet!" The black-haired man yelled with delight and tackled Harry in a hug.

"Padfoot." He heard Harry's muffled voice and a "oof". He sounded like he was laughing.
The two men were nearly of the same height.

"Sirius, let him breathe." Remus said in a calm voice, though an indulging smile was present on his face.

"Tom, it is so nice to meet you again." Moony said.

At the exact moment, Sirius decided to finally leave Harry alone and turned towards Tom.

"Tom Riddle! I'm so happy to meet you finally!" He said and hugged him tightly.

Now, Tom was slightly uncomfortable. Hugging someone was a new concept to him.

At the orphanage, the cook, Maria, comforted him sometimes when he was small. Nagini hugged him, but it was very different from a human embrace. Harry liked to hug him every time he got a chance. But it was alright, it was Harry. Astoria and Graham were fond of embracing people too. But that was it.

He was never hugged by a stranger.

Feeling bad for receiving such an enthusiastic hug and not doing anything, he awkwardly patted Sirius' back.

The man leaned back and let Remus greet him. Thankfully, he did not hug him. The werewolf seemed to understand his awkwardness.

Swiping fake tears from his face, Sirius said, "Oh Remy, our pup has finally brought a boy home. He's growing up."

Tom saw that Harry looked uncharacteristically embarrassed and flushed.

He did not look like a Dark Lord at all, at the moment. He looked like a boy introducing his boyfriend to his parents. Tom wondered how different it would be if Harry wasn't a Dark Lord. But well, things happen.

"That's enough Padfoot. Please for Merlin's sake stop." Harry grumbled.

"Why do you call him.... Padfoot?" He asked curiously.

Harry only sighed and shook his head in reply. He shot him a look which clearly said- 'You brought this on yourself'.

Remus did the same.

Suddenly, Sirius gave him an innocent look, though he looked very impish.
The next second, a big, black dog was standing in Sirius' place.

The dog barked and then jumped on him.

Tom yelped and fell on his butt.

The dog then proceeded to lick his face completely.
Shocked and bewildered, Tom was only able to manage a meek, "Stop!"

Then, a huge, dark grey wolf appeared in his vision and pulled the dog off him.
The wolf then dragged the dog outside the room.

Tom did not want to know what they were going to do.

Harry, who was red-faced, hurried to pull him up and spelled his face clean.

"I'm so sorry, darling. I should've warned you earlier."

"It's alright, Harry. I'm fine." He reassured the man.

Harry stared at him for some moments doubtfully.

Nodding, he said, "Alright. I'll show you your room. Take a shower and relax a bit in the room, then I'll call you to meet the rest." And then he mumbled under his breath, "Hopefully, we don't meet anyone before that."

They climbed the staircase. Harry kept informing him about the people inside the portraits.

"The portraits are spelled to secrecy. They can't tell anything about what is said inside the manor, without the permission of the Lord." He explained as they walked. "This is the main family wing. Only you and I have rooms here."

They were in the corridor when a sudden gust of wind hit them.

A feminine laugh was heard from it.

"What?" Tom said, startled.

Harry sighed and pinched the bridge of his nose.
'It is a nice nose', Tom thought absentmindedly.

Right now, the man looked very much like a professor in a class full of misbehaving students.

"Aurora." He intoned.

The wind stopped and Tom saw a beautiful girl floating in between the wind. She had light blue hair with purple highlights. She had warm tan colored skin, purple eyes and slightly pointed ears.

"Hello, Harry, Tom." Her voice was soft and musical.

"Good evening, Aurora. You look good." Harry said pleasantly.

"Oh yes! See this, Harry!" She said, pointing at her hair. "Isn't this color beautiful?"

"Yes it is." Turning towards him, he said, "Tom, this is Aurora."

"Hello." He said politely.

The floating girl looked at him and beamed. "Hi, Tom. It's good to finally meet you! You look even more handsome in real life than in papers."

Tom blushed slightly and said, "Thank you. You look beautiful too."

The girl only smiled serenely and said, "Oh! Grace and Tulip wanted to show me a new flower patch. Got to go! Bye!"

With that, she disappeared.

Tom opened his mouth to question, but Harry beat him to it.

"Grace and Tulip might be one of the fairies. Aurora is a..... um, kind of a wind spirit."

"Kind of?"

He grimaced slightly and said, "I was experimenting. An explosion happened and Aurora was born. It is hard to explain how I ended up with a man-made baby by mistake. So, I tell others that she's a wind spirit."

"You made a wind spirit?" He asked incredulously.

"By mistake. Let me show you your room, darling."

Tom went along absently, wondering how did one end up making a living being by mistake!?

"There is a way to end up with a living being by mistake, Tom. I assure you Aurora isn't my biological daughter." The man said with a smirk.

The first sentence confused him a bit, but the second one made it very clear what Harry was insinuating.

"I did not mean that." He said, blushing furiously.

Harry only snickered and stopped walking.

They were standing in front of a huge door.

"Well, open the door, darling."

He opened the door and took a sharp breath.

The room was magnificent.

It was in green, gold and cream colors. A huge bed was on one side of the room. A bookshelf was covering half of the wall adjacent to the bed. Two doors, one leading to the closet and other to the bathroom, were opposite to the bed. The room was enormous.

"It's lovely." He said in awe.

Chapter Text

Tom laid on the bed. It was warm and soft. He thought of his day. Actually, he thought of the whole year.

He went from being the Mudblood of Slytherin to the Slytherin Prince. Lord Slytherin. He went from being the most undesirable student, as far as he knew, to being in a relationship with one of the most desirable person in the wizarding world.

He felt like he was sitting on a rollercoaster.

He had murdered someone, tortured them. Enjoyed it.

Hogwarts and Diagon Alley were the only magical places he'd visited in the past. But now, he had travelled outside Britain. Both magical and muggle.

Because of Dumbledore, leaving the orphanage before his graduation seemed impossible to him. But now, here he was, in America, miles away from that thrice-damned orphanage.

His second-hand clothes were replaced by expensive, custom-made clothes of the best quality.

He met Harry, the Dark Lord, Lord Peverell, Master of Death. He had met the man who was said to be the cruelest, but had seen the soft, caring person beneath the cold exterior.

Even today, he got to know that the only werewolf he'd met was the werewolf head.

A dogfather. (Yes, this is what he'll call Sirius. Revenge for that attack.)

A man-made wind spirit.

He'd seen fairies today. (They were said to be extinct.)

He was going to stay in one of the oldest manor in the world.

Sometimes, he wondered whether this was all a dream and he was going to wake up on the prickly old mattress of the orphanage.

But-

A knock.

Tom got up and opened the door.

Harry was standing there, wearing a white shirt and dark blue pants. His hair, which was usually styled, was slightly messy. And the biggest difference. His eyes were green. He was the most beautiful man Tom had ever seen.

And he was smiling at him, asking whether he could enter the room.

Tom nodded and let the man in.

Harry took the hold of his arms and pulled him towards the balcony.

This is what happened whenever Tom thought that he was dreaming. Harry would appear in front of him. Maybe he somehow knew what Tom was thinking. Whatever the fact might be, his presence was proof enough for Tom to know that this wasn't a dream.

"Do you like the room?"

"Yes. It is magnificent." He said sincerely.

Smiling, Harry continued, "I'm here to tell you about your training, sweet."

Tom's eyes brightened with excitement. Harry had promised to teach him Dark Arts during the summer.

"Now, I know that I promised to teach you dark arts only. But I want you to learn more about every other subject too. Even the ones not taught at Hogwarts. So, I thought that you could learn about subjects too."

"Really!?" He was almost bouncing on the chair. Magic was something he'll never get tired of learning. His friends' words came to his mind. They'd told him to relax and enjoy the holidays. But people didn't get joy from the same thing. His idea of spending the holidays was to learn something new. And he loved it. Luckily for him, Harry had the same preferences too.

"Yes, darling. Everything from alchemy to wizarding literature."

"Wait- there are novels written by wizards?" He asked with hope.

"Yeah. You'll be surprised by the number of books written by magical beings. Humans, werewolves, vampires, merpeople and the others too."

"That's great!"

"Yes it is. But there's more. I won't be the only person teaching you. My Inner Circle members, the Knights, my closest friends, they will be teaching you too. I'll tell you the schedule tomorrow. Though you'll have to follow the schedule, no slacking off." He added sternly. He was in his 'Professor mode'.

Tom nodded. He did not mind following a schedule.

"Okay. For the morning, wake up whenever you want, but be ready by 8. I'll be with you for the morning exercise. It includes jogging, meditating and going to the gym. Then at 10, we'll have breakfast. After that, you can do whatever you want till 12. At noon, your lessons will start. At 3, I'll join you for lunch if I'm not with you. After lunch, you once again have lessons and training. By 5, the lessons will end and you can join me in my study if you want. Or you can simply rest. At 7, you'll have lessons with me till 9, and at 10, we will have dinner. On Sundays you have a day-off. Tomorrow, I'll show you around the manor after breakfast."

Looking serious, he continued, "My friends come and go anytime in the manor. Though I trust them, please take care of yourself. Once in every two weeks, I have a meeting with my Knights. I'll inform you about them. If you want, you can join those meetings."

"Twice every week, I have meetings with the Reapers, though they take place in the headquarters. I apologize, but you'll not be attending them until you're ready. I don't trust them completely. Please understand."

Though he was a bit put-off by not being permitted to attend the meeting with the rest of the Reapers, he understood. If he goes there, it will be either as one of Harry's followers or his partner. Every  Reaper wouldn't want a seventeen year old child to be their Lord's partner.

He nodded at Harry.

Satisfied, the man leant back and closed his eyes.

They sat in a comfortable silence for a while.

When Harry tilted his head, Tom knew that the other man was going to ask him something embarrassing or something he was proud of. He had a feeling that it was the former.

"You know right, darling, that you don't have to call me 'my lord'?"
He sounded genuinely curious.

Tom's face pinked a bit. He knew that this question would come up one or the other day.

"I know."

"Then why did you do that the day we killed that toad?"

Looking down to hide his blush, Tom answered, "I- It just felt the right thing to do. I mean, you're powerful, there's no denying it. And your followers, they themselves are not weak. If they call you as their lord, it's only fair that I do so too. And I- um, I like it."

Harry looked at him surprised for some moments, before a lecherous smile came over his face.

The man got up from his seat and walked towards him.

His eyes were dark, and he leant forward, both hands on the arms of the chair, his voice deep and sensual.

Tom gulped and leaned back, his eyes wide and heartbeat faster. He wasn't scared. Just the opposite.

"You like calling me your Lord, darling? Is that what you want to do, my sweet Tom?" He whispered in his ears, his lips touching the shell of his ear.

Tom flushed and felt dazed, his face and body felt warm.

"Uh-um." He tried to say something, but was unable to. His mind was blank, only focusing on Harry's warm breath on his ears.

"I am your Lord, aren't I?"

His lips moved from the ear and went to his cheeks. He started moving his lips on his cheek, sometimes kissing or simply touching them.

"Yes." Tom whispered. His hands were gripping the arms of the chair tightly and he was biting his lips to keep his mouth shut.

"Hmm." Harry's mouth went near his jaw. His hands moved from the chair to Tom's waist and neck, leaning closer to the younger boy.

A sound escaped from Tom's mouth, making him flush deeper.

Before it could go any further, a house-elf popped inside the room. The poor creature's eyes went wide and looked embarrassed. Looking down, the house-elf squeaked, and pulled his, "Master Harry! Dobby so sorry! Please forgive me, Master!"

Harry remained close to him for some moments and sighed. Standing straight, he turned towards Dobby and said, "It's alright, Dobby. And it's 'Dobby is so sorry'. Tell me why you are here."

He did not look embarrassed at all for being caught in that position. Tom's face, on the other hand, was on fire.

"Yes, Master Hary! I'm sorry! The dinner is served, Master." Bowing, he vanished from the room.

Tom wouldn't have opposed the earth swallowing him right now.
It. Was. So. Awkward.

What do you say after one does something like this?

"Huh. Looks like we have to continue later." He said with a smirk. Tom covered his face with his hands. 

Harry laughed and said, "Let's go and have dinner, my sweet prince."

Sirius took one look at his flushed face and Harry's self-satisfied smirk and shouted in delight.
"Tell me you both have kissed!"

Tom coughed and spat the water he was drinking, while Harry only shook his head in mock sadness.
"No Siri, we didn't."

"Oh no!" Sirius slumped back into the chair and handed over ten galleons to Remus, who already had his hand stretched out.

"You bet on us kissing?" Tom asked dubiously.

"Yes. If you had kissed today, I would've won. Since you did not, Remy did." He wiped fake tears from his face.

Tom looked at Harry. The man only shook his head and ate. Remus was doing the same.

Tom took the advice and started eating.

Nearly at midnight, Tom finally stopped reading the novel Harry had given him a few hours ago. It was a historical fiction about a magical queen and her muggle lover. Honestly, it was a really good book.

Keeping the book beside his wand on the side table, Tom laid on the bed.

The events of the day were overwhelming, but he wouldn't change it for anything in the world.

Also, he was excited for tomorrow.

He was finally going to meet Harry's friends and his inner circle.

Chapter Text

Tom woke up peacefully in the morning. Soft light coming through the window filled his room. He felt like he was in heaven.

Heaving a sigh of content, he got up and stretched.

"Tilly." He called out.

A female house-elf appeared in front of him, wearing robes with the Peverell House Crest.

"How can I help you, Master Tom?"

"Please draw a bath for me."

Tilly bowed and went away, leaving him feeling a bit awkward. It take time to get used to such things.

Harry had assigned her as his personal house-elf. Tilly was ecstatic when Harry had given her the job of being his personal house-elf.

He sat on the bed for some time, still a bit sleepy. It was 7.15 am. Tom had decided to wake up early and continue the novel after taking a bath.

The bath was blissful. He fell in love with the rose and vanilla scented soaps and bubbles.

As he got out, he wondered what he should wear. Surely not a formal attire.

He asked Tilly for advice.

"Master Hadrian always wears a sleeveless t-shirt and knee-length trousers."

As he was getting dressed, he fantasized Harry in the same attire. He wondered whether the man removed his shirt during the workout.
'He should.'

At 7.50, he asked Tilly to take him to Harry.

He felt very, very weird and self-conscious wearing the clothes he was.

A red t-shirt and black trousers which reached his knees.

Now, he knew it was something very common, the attire. But from when he a child, all he wore was shirts and pants. These clothes were new for him.

As soon as he entered the lounge, he had to keep himself from drooling.

Real Harry was hotter than the fantasy one.

The man was wearing a black sleeveless t-shirt and grey trousers. Exactly what Tilly had said.
But damn, the man looked so attractive.

The shirt he was wearing was thin. Tom could see the outline of his really fine body. He wasn't muscular like Graham , but was lean. He was wearing a headband to keep his hair out of his face, which looked like he hadn't combed since yesterday.

"Damn, he looks hot." He thought.

Harry turned to look at him and grinned. "Why, thank you, darling. You yourself look ravishing today."

He said that aloud, Tom realized.

Tom forced himself not to blush. He'd promised himself that he would not act affected by Harry's flirting. He'll flirt right back.

"Well, I was excited." He said, smiling sweetly at Harry.

Later, Tom would wish that he hadn't said those words. I'm excited.

The man smiled back.

Tom wanted to cry. He wanted to go back into his room and sleep for a week.

His whole body hurt.

Harry, the bastard, made him run the whole perimeter of the huge garden, for half-an-hour.
And would have made him run more, if Tom did not nearly collapse.

The Slytherin thought that the man would let him go. But no! Mr. I-don't-get-tired made him walk to the gym and do some exercises.

After fifteen minutes of intense workout, Harry took pity on him and told him to rest, cancelling his meditating session. No, the man did not leave the gym.
The bastard told him to go back to his room to rest, which was on the opposite side of the manor.

Half-way through it, Tom collapsed on the first couch he found. He did not care about someone stumbling on him.

Fifteen minutes later, it was Remus who found him.

The man took in his sweaty and tired appearance, and said, "You went to exercise with Harry, didn't you?"

"Yes."

Clicking his tongue, the man said, "This is the reason why me and that vampire are the only ones who accompany him during workout. Harry hardly gets tired from his exercise session and the other fragile humans end up like you."

"Mmm." It felt good to know that he wasn't the only one who suffered so bad. Fragile humans.

"Though you seem the most affected one."

Or not.

"I get it. Don't tire me now, Moony. Your godson was enough." He almost whined.

"I don't think you know just how much Harry can tire you." The werewolf said with a smirk.

"What is with you guys and innuendos?" He asked, exasperated.

"It happens when you live with Sirius Black and a pair of demon twins."

Tom only leant back. He was too tired to enquire about these 'demon twins'.

"Let me carry you till your room." Remus said.

Tom extended his hands, too worn out to be embarrassed.

The werewolf picked him up as if he was a doll and took him to his room.

At the door, the man let him down and said, "Rest. Have breakfast in your room. I'll tell Harry that you are exhausted. Expect him to come here."

With that, the man left him.

Sometime later, he heard a knock.

"Come in."

Tom was laying on the bed with his face down. He hadn't even changed from his tshirt and trousers.

He was tired.

Harry entered the room. He had changed his clothes, and was now wearing a shirt and pants.

He came near the bed and asked, concerned, "Are you alright, sweet?"

"No, I'm not." His voice was muffled by the sheets covering him.

He heard Harry sigh and say, "Okay, maybe I shouldn't have made you run so much."

"Don't feel guilty. I'll get used to it."

Tom felt Harry move his hands through his hair. He leant into the touch.

He heard Harry chuckle and say, "Oh darling, it's alright."

"M-mm."

Harry removed his shoes and sat on the bed, pulling Tom towards him.

A book appeared in his hands, and he started reading, moving his hands through Tom's hair, with the boy's head on his lap.

They stayed in the same position for nearly two hours.

At 11.30, Harry woke up Tom.

"What is it?" Tom asked sleepily.

"Wake up, sweet. You have lessons at 12, remember? You only have half-an-hour left till then. And you also have to eat your breakfast. So get up, sleeping beauty."

Tom opened his eyes. He saw that his whole body was wound up around Harry's legs and his head in the man's lap. Harry's hands were still moving through his hair, which felt nice.

Slowly, he got up with a "hmm".

He went to the bathroom to take a shower. Merlin, he still felt so sluggish. And he still had his lessons. Maybe listening to his friends' idea would've been much better? 

Fifteen minutes later, he emerged from the bathroom.

Harry was now sitting on one of the couches in the room, reading a book.
What a Ravenclaw.

"You look good, have breakfast, sweet."
Harry commented, looking up from the book.

"Yes, thank you. I am sorry, I promised you to...." Tom trailed off. He had promised Harry to follow the schedule, to do his best, that he'll be fine. And here he was, still half-awake, almost in the mood to skip those lesson.

"No, no. It's alright. The first day doing exercise does this to everyone. Don't worry. You'll get used to it after a week or more." Harry assured him.

Still a bit embarrassed, Tom sat beside Harry and ate his breakfast.

They sat in silence as Harry read and Tom ate.

Just five minutes before 12, Harry got up when he noticed that Tom had finished eating.

"Great. Let's go now."

With that, he led Tom to his study.

Tom sat on the chairs in front of the desk and Harry took the one behind it.
The chair looked less like a chair and more like a throne.

Exactly at 12, the fireplace roared and a person entered the room.

The woman had bushy brown hair and was wearing clothes which were a mixture between muggle and wizarding robes.
She had sharp brown eyes, which warmed immediately as soon as she looked at Harry.

"Harry! Merlin, finally you're here for more than a day." She laughed and hugged Harry fiercely.

'Don't. Be. Jealous.' Tom commanded himself.

Harry laughed slightly and returned the embrace.

"Yeah, Mione. Finally away from that old coot."

Hermione, Tom said the name mentally. He knew her.

She was the Senior Undersecretary to the President of MACUSA.

The youngest one to get that job. She had started her career as a worker in the No-Maj Regulation Department, but her intellect had made her rise in the Ministry. She was made the Senior Undersecretary after the death of the previous one. It was said to be an accident and Tom believed it. Until today. Seeing her here, he wondered whether the accident was real or faked.

The woman turned in his direction and scrutinized him.

'How did Harry end up making close friends with so many high ranking members of the wizarding world?' Tom wondered.

"Hermione, this is Tom Riddle. Tom, this is Hermione Granger. She'll be teaching you Transfiguration and some things about No-Maj world." He introduced both of them to each other.

Hermione extended his hands towards him, which he accepted.

"It's an honour to meet you, Miss Granger." He said politely.

The woman smiled at him and said, "I could say the same about you, Mr. Riddle. Harry does speak highly of you."

He turned to look at Harry, who waved his hands and said, "Yes, yes. Please do get to know each other outside the study. I have work to do. Dobby will show you the room for the lessons."

Right on cue, the elf popped in the room and said, "Dobby shows Master Tom and Ms. Hermione the room."

As he exited the room, he heard Hermione mutter "It's 'Dobby will show you the room', Dobby."

Fifteen minutes into the lesson, Tom could say without a doubt that Hermione Granger was a genius. After the previous hesitation, the woman started talking with him amiably.

She was the smartest woman Tom had met. Her intelligence could even rival Harry's.

They went from basic transfiguration to human transfiguration.

Hermione had told him that since Tom had experience in the muggle world, they'll go through Muggle Studies during the last fifteen minutes of every lecture.

Though she was kind and smart, she was equally stern.

She made him remember at least fifteen different Transfiguration equations, which are taught in the advanced classes, in the first forty-five minutes.

Moreover, she gave him three different books on the same subject, which he had to finish within the next three weeks and she'll test him on each and every chapter of the books.

During the last fifteen minutes, she took a short quiz on his knowledge about the Muggle world, which to his dismay, wasn't as good as he thought.

Hermione told him that since he lived in the poorer part of London, he might've not come across anyone with something called as a smartphone.

He knew that muggles had phones. But what the hell are smartphones? Why do phones need to be smart?

When he asked his tutor about it, she promised him to bring the device on her next visit.

At the end of the lesson, Dobby came inside the room and gave him a piece of paper.

"Master Hadrian told Dobby giv- to give this to you, Master Tom. It is your lesson plan. Your next tutor will be here, Master Tom."

With that, he bowed and went away.

Hermione smiled at him and said, "You're a good student, Tom. I can see why Harry is so smitten with you."

Tom blushed a bit and said hurriedly, "You are a really good teacher too, Hermione."

She only laughed and bid him goodbye.
"Meet you on Thursday, Tom."

As he was left alone, he looked down at the lesson plan.

Great. His next lesson was on Magical History.

He hoped that the teacher was at least alive.

Chapter Text

His next tutor was a half-veela.

She was tall, had silver blonde hair and bright blue eyes. Though she looked older than Harry, by a few years at least.

"Good afternoon, ma'am."

"Good afternoon, Monsieur Riddle. I'm Fluer Delacour." She said with a warm smile and spoke with a heavy French accent.

"Please call me Tom, ma'am."

"Alright. Call me Fleur."

As they sat on the couches, she continued, "I'll be teaching you Magical History, Literature, Arts, Etiquettes and some languages."

"Oh. That's great."

This lesson would be easy. There wasn't any practical magic to do.

"So, tell me Tom, between dance, drama, music and painting, what will you choose?"

Taken aback with the question, Tom stared at the woman. Is this what the lessons will entail?

Fluer gave him a stern look and said, "Tom, you might think that these things are useless. But every pureblood is taught at least one of those things. Sometimes even all. You have to be at least decent in one."

A bit embarrassed, Tom looked down."I apologize, Fleur."
He did not think that things like dancing and singing were really important. Then again, he had heard the pureblood children bragging about such lessons.

What should he do?

Looking at his conflicted face, Fluer's frown softened a bit and she said, "Think about what you will enjoy the most. And if still you can't come up with one, we can do all of them and see what interests you the most. Though, it will take time. We will have to increase our number of lessons then."

Thinking hard on what he would enjoy, Tom asked Fluer absently, "What did Harry choose?"

"He had chosen dance."

Jaw hanging open, Tom stared at the witch. He could not imagine Harry dancing like he had seen the muggles do.

Laughing at his expression, Fluer said, "I think you got me wrong, Tom. My fault, I should've explained this to you in more detail."

Waving her hand elegantly, she started, "Arts doesn't mean you have to be perfect at it. When I said that Harry chose dancing, it is not something like tap dancimg or ballet. Simply ball dance and it's variations. Actually, these things are taught at school. It started years ago. Purebloods have always valued art in any form. And they loved parties, soiree and balls . What do you call them, the No-Maj borns?"

"Muggleborns."

"Ah yes, muggleborns. Now, these things weren't taught to them by anyone. They felt humiliated and embarassed whenever they attended any pureblood functions. Many ministries are made-up of the purebloods. So, the schools took it on themselves to teach these things to the students. Ironically, it was Hogwarts that started this tradition. Many schools followed it. But sadly, your school stopped giving those lessons a few years ago. We think that Dumbledore has to do something with it."

Tom hated the old man even more after hearing that. What right did that old man have to mess so much with his school!?

Seeing him about to explode, Fleur said, "Calm down, Tom. I know that you are angry, but doing this now won't make any difference. This is what the Dark Lord is working on. He wants to make our world better. This is why he went to Hogwarts. To destroy Dumbledore from within. I've heard that he has found some dirt on him. A few more things, and we will have Dumbledore where he belongs. Kneeling at our Lord's feet, begging for mercy. He does not only want to kill Dumbledore, he wants to destroy him."

Tom saw the loyal and devoted look on her face.

For the first time since yesterday, he realized that these people weren't only Harry's friends, but also his followers.

These people were dangerous killers, assassins and torturers.

That Harry was the Dark Lord.

At Hogwarts, it felt less real, because Harry did not act so carefree and relaxed, as he did here.

It had been only one day, but Tom had never seen the older man so much at ease.

These people weren't just young adults. They are the ones who would kill for their leader without blinking an eye.

He felt many emotions go through him. Adoration, devotion and loyalty.

He would fight alongside these people.

A wave of rejuvenation went through him. He felt charged.

He would do anything for Harry.

Even dancing lessons.

"I'll choose dance." He said confidently.

Fleur blinked at him, coming out of her stupor, though she did not show it.

"Very well. And choose any three languages you want to learn."

Thinking hard on it, he said, "French, Latin and Spanish."

"Good."

With that, their lessons started.

Since they only had two lessons a week, Fleur decided that she'll first teach him dance and etiquettes, since the Ministry Ball was in four weeks, on 15th of July.

She had given him some notes on languages and history. He had to read two novels for the literature part.

'Merlin, so much work to do in only two lessons.'

He sighed and accepted his fate.

The next lesson, he had surprisingly, or maybe not, with Sirius and Remus.

The two men came inside the room and greeted him.

"Good afternoon Tom." Remus.
And.
"How's my favorite son-in-law?" Sirius.

"I'm good." He said, smiling at the two. It felt good to see familiar faces, even if they knew each other for only a day.
"How are you two?"

"We're good. A few meetings with some werewolves and one with Harry."

They settled on the couch.

"How did you find the first two lessons?" Sirius asked.

"They were good. Hermione is a genius and Fleur is good too."

"Ah yes. Hermione and Fleur. Man, I just know that they gave you a lot of books to read. Bloody Ravenclaws they are, the two of them." Sirius said, laughing.

Tom laughed at the statement. Yes, it was true.

Smirking at Remus' direction, the grey-eyed man said conspiratorially, "I swear, those two, along with a literal Ravenclaw, Harry and Remus, have formed some sort of a secret book club."

He and Tom snickered at that, whereas Remus smirked back and said, "Yes, we do. And do you know what our main topic of discussion is, Padfoot? 'How to prank Sirius Black'."

Tom laughed harder at the affronted face Sirius made.

"Anyways, your lessons. Harry will have our heads if we don't teach you anything. Sirius and I will be teaching you charms, warding and helping you with your animagus transformation." Remus said a bit seriously.

"Animagus!? That's cool." He said excitedly. Finally something interesting to do!

"Yes. Though, it will take over a month to do so. We'll give you the mandrake leaves and the potions. Also, we'll help you with the meditation." Sirius said.

"For now, let's start with charms." Remus said.

Tom got to know that Remus and Sirius, in spite of their joking attitude, were really good teachers.

They taught him about many Auror level charms and wards.

At the end of the lesson, he told them sincerely, "You both are really good at teaching."

They smiled at him and Sirius ruffled his hair.

"Hey! Not my hair."

Dobby called them at three for lunch.

Harry was already seated on the head of the table and reading a book. Tom took the chair beside him and asked, "How was your day, Harry?"

"Tiring. What about you? How did you find your new tutors?" He said, grinning slightly at the Blacks.

"They were all really good."

They ate the food served by the house-elf and talked about the lessons. Well, Tom did. Harry just smiled and nodded at him, commenting sometimes. It felt really good to have a full plate to eat during the summers.

Just as they finished eating, Harry looked up and said, "They are here."

"They?"

"Yes. The ones who are going to teach you defence." He said in his usual mysterious way. No matter how much Tom asked him who was going to teach him which subjects, Harry never told him. Dark Lord and their love for mysteries. Dramatic.

The door of the dining room opened and two people entered.

One of them was tall, had red hair, freckles all over his face and blue eyes.

The other man was unnaturally pale and attractive. He looked like he was made from marble. He had golden brown hair and eyes of the same colour. Almost as tall as Remus.

'Vampire.' He realized.

Harry got up from his seat as soon as the red-head made his way towards him.

"Harry!" The man exclaimed and hugged him fiercely.

"Ron, mate. How are you.?" Harry asked, laughing.

Ronald Weasley.

He was an Auror working for the MACUSA. The best and youngest of his team. He solved almost every case his team had gotten from the time he had joined the auror department. He was quite famous for it.

He had not listened to whatever the two friends were talking about, deep in thought.

He looked at the vampire. If his clothes were anything to go by, he was high up in the coven.

Head werewolf. Senior Undersecretary. Auror. Pureblood Lords. Pureblood Heirs. Vampire.

Harry had people who controlled masses under them.

The Wealsey's were known light family (or were they?). How did one of them end up following a Dark Lord?

He then saw Harry making his way towards the vampire.

"Cedric. How are you?" They shook their hands.
Vampires were said to be ice-cold, but Harry did not show any reaction to it.

"I'm fine, Harry. You look radiant though." He said, smirking at Tom's direction.

Harry introduced the two men to him.

Ronald Weasley and Cedric Diggory.

The second name seemed familiar, though he could not put his finger on it.

Harry told them to go to the room for the lesson.

Well, this was his favourite subject. Defence. He wondered how it would be. The lesson.

Chapter Text

He silently followed the two men to the lessons room.

The vampire remained quiet the whole time, whereas Ronald talked about what they were going to teach him.

Apparently, they weren't just going to teach him offensive and defensive spells. Muggle fighting, using knives, daggers, guns and swords would also be taught to him.

When he asked why, it was Diggory who answered him, "Because when you are working for the Dark Lord, you need to be versatile. There might be times where you don't have your wand, or your magic is exhausted, or maybe you have magic restraints on you. What will you do in those situations? How will you get away from the enemies? The wizards think that magic makes them superior, and they like to remain the way they are, not seeing the flaws in them, never trying to do better. This is why you need to learn things the non-magical way too."

"Oh, yes." He said blankly, feeling a bit dumb at his question.

The lesson continued till 5.30.

Ron and Cedric were good. Very good.

They taught him how to use a dagger, where to strike. Places where a single strike could kill a person. How to hide a dagger perfectly. Spells to use in a duel. How to use a dagger and magic at the same time.

Tom knew that Cedric was restraining himself. Vampires were fast when they fought. A muggle wouldn't be able to even see them when vampires ran at their maximum speed. Not that witches and wizards were able to see them either that way.

Ron, he understood why, was known as one of the best aurors. The man was very good at strategizing and could guess the opponent's next move before the person themselves.

He was in awe when he saw the duel between his two tutors.

Both of them were fast, always moving, not glancing anywhere but the opponent. Though Ron was a human, he could surprisingly keep up with Cedric.

At the end of the lesson, Tom was sweaty and breathing hard. Yet, he felt charged. This was the best lesson he ever had. (Except for Harry's.)

He was sitting on the floor, his legs stretched.

"You aren't bad, kid." Cedric commented.

"Yes, the old man isn't wrong." Ron said, smirking.

"You two aren't bad either." He said with a grin.

Ron snorted and offered him his hand to get up.

As he got up, Cedric said, "Well, we have to go. I've work to do and Ron, well, you do whatever you want to."

"Yes. I had promised Hermione to take her out for dinner tonight."

"You two know each other?" Tom asked, a bit suprised.

"We're dating." The auror had a faint blush and a fond smile on his face as he said that.

When Ron and Cedric left the manor, he asked Dobby whether Harry was at home or not.

Turns out, both Remus and Harry had some meeting with the werewolves and Sirius had gone to meet some ministry members.

Tom called Tilly to take him to the library, which was on the top floor of the manor.

The place was beautiful, with dark brown bookshelves and many, many books.

The books dated back from hundreds of years ago.

There were many handwritten journals, diaries and notebooks too.

The library had both magical and non-magical books in it.

Tom fell in love with the place. Reverently, he touched the spines of as many books as he could, murmuring their names.

The place had large windows on one wall, many couches, rugs and pillows. It was clear that the place was used frequently.

On a table, he saw many notes and parchments, which had Harry's and many different handwriting on them. He could make out Hermione's handwriting on some pages too.

He sat down on a rug near the fireplace and started reading one of the history books given by Fleur.

Tom was reading the fifth chapter of the book when he felt someone watching him.

He was leaning on a couch, his legs stretched and a book in his hands.

Turning behind, he first saw a tuft of black hair.

Harry.

The man came towards him and asked, "How was your day, darling?" He proceeded to sit beside Tom, keeping his arm around his waist.

Tom gave him a small smile and said, "It was good. How was your meeting?"

"Boring."

Harry pulled Tom towards him, keeping his chin on the boy's head.

"That's sad."

"Hmm."

His hands started moving up and down Tom's arms, pulling him flush against him.

"Don't you have to teach me?" Tom asked, a bit breathlessly.

"Yes. I do. Let's go to the lesson room, sweet." He said, standing up suddenly and smirking at Tom who gaped at him.
"I want you there in five minutes, sweet, or I might have to punish you." The man purred and left.

Tom turned beet-red at the comment and ran out of the library.

Harry was nowhere to be seen and Tom realized one thing. He was lost.

The place was so damn big, Tom knew that if he went on his own, he would be an hour late to the lesson.

He tried calling Tilly and Dobby, but both the house-elves did not respond.

Running around for over a minute, he saw Aurora.

"Aurora!"

"Hey Tom." The girl said, smiling at him. "How can I help you?"

"Please take me to the room I have lessons in. Fast."

The girl laughed and floated away with a "Follow me!"

Tenseconds before the time was over, Tom rushed into the room, breathing hard.

He saw Harry lounging on a couch, chatting with Tilly and Dobby.

"Hello, sweet." The man said, giving him an infuriating smirk.

"You- " Tom huffed and sat beside him.

Harry sent the elves away and started with the lesson.

"Remember, you should never let the magic control you. Fight for control. Dark magic will make you feel light-headed. You'll feel good, too good. Don't let it lose your concentration. Remember what happened when you used so many dark spells the first time? It made you act funny. Drunk. The key to control dark Magic is practice. Everyday, you should practice dark spells for at least an hour, ranging from low to high level spells. Meditation helps too."

They started with low-level dark spells, which Tom was disappointed over.

Harry only said, "You'll see."

He used the same five spells for fifteen minutes before he started feeling different. An excited thrill ran all over his body.

"Do you feel it?" Harry asked.

"Yes."

"Good. The first step to control dark magic is identifying it. You now know how it feels in low concentration. Try not to get lost in the feeling. Get yourself under control."

He was successful in doing so.

Their lesson continued for two hours. The level of the spells increased as he got better at controlling himself.

Though, by the time he got to spells like blood boiling curses, he lost his concentration.

Luckily, it happened after two hours. Harry immediately stopped the lessons and pulled him against himself.

Tom sighed softly into his arms, still feeling the effects of the magic.

"You did really well, darling." Harry praised him.

"Really?"

"Yes. Even some of my Knights had problems with using so much dark magic the first time. I'm honestly impressed that you made it so far without losing your concentration, Tom."

"Thank you." He said a bit shyly. People had rarely praised him so sincerely in the past.

At 9.45, they went down to have dinner after Tom fully recovered from the effects of the magic.

As they went towards their rooms, Harry kissed him on his forehead and said, "Good night, darling."

Tom slept that night with a dopey smile on his face.

Chapter Text

The next day, he woke up at the same time and accompanied Harry for the exercise.

Like the day before, he felt exhausted after a few rounds, whereas Harry kept running without even resting for a minute.

This time though, he sat down on one of the benches near a fountain and waited for Harry.

After a few minutes, Harry returned to him and they went to the gym.

This time though, he was granted the pleasure to see a shirtless Harry.
He drooled at the sight, barely able to hide it from the man.

For five minutes straight, he stared at the Dark Lord, taking in his chest and back. A few hair were scattered around his chest, which Tom wanted to move his hands on.

When he did not move his gaze from the man, Harry said, "I know you're enjoying the view, darling. But please keep exercising, my sweet."

Flushing red, he looked away and turned back to equipment.

At 9.15, they started on meditation.

"Close your eyes and take deep breaths. Concentrate and feel your magic. It will be warm and comforting. Concentrate and let it flow around you."

Following the instructions, he closed his eyes and relaxed. They were sitting on a mat on the floor, in the room beside the gym.

The room was specifically designed for meditation. It had windows on the three walls, which almost reached the ceiling. Sunlight had filled the room, and Tom could hear the sounds of chirping of the birds and of the water flowing down from the fountains.

After almost ten minutes, he felt the warmth of his magic.

It was so comforting.

His magic floated around him like a blanket, and he wanted nothing more than to sleep, feeling that warmth. Yet, he willed himself not to do so. Never let the magic take control of you.

Tom waited patiently in his lesson room for his tutor.

He felt at peace.

The meditation had made him feel like a new person. Like nothing can stop him. He felt recharged.

Tom understood why Harry meditated every morning.

It just felt so good.

The doors opened and a man shorter than himself came in.

The man had blonde hair and a round, kind face. He did not look like a man Tom would associate with the Dark Lord.

"Hello. You must be Tom." The man said, smiling at him.

"Yes, I am sir." He said politely.

"It's good to meet you, Tom. I'm Neville Longbottom, your Herbology tutor."

Neville wasn't the person Tom thought him to be.

Some of the plants which he taught could literally devour humans.

Tom gulped when the man's eyes took an almost maniacal gleam as he told him about the various poisons one could extract from the plants.
(The man nearly cackled when he told him about a fruit which induces hallucinations so bad, that the victim kills themselves.)

Neville was a genius when it came to plants.

He knew more plants than the official documents had stated.

The man left with a promise to bring a flesh-eating plant for the next lecture.

It was just Cedric who came after Neville had left.

"Hello, Cedric. Where's Ron?"

"He had some Auror work to do. Let's start with the lesson."

Cedric taught him about many different muggle fighting styles and also the basics of sword fighting.

"What is your rank in the coven, Cedric?" He asked as the lesson neared its end.

The vampire smirked and said, "Why? I'm the king."

Tom was too stunned to notice Cedric leaving the room.

'The vampire king!?' Maybe it was time to not be surprised with everything happening around him these days?

"Hello, Tom. I brought this hot chocolate for you. You are feeling a bit dazed, aren't you? Sit down, my prince."

He turned to the speaker and saw a short girl with ash blonde hair. She looked at him with wide greyish-blue eyes and a small, calm smile.

Too dazed, he took the offered drink and sat down.

At least the drink wasn't poisonous.

"I'm Luna Lovegood and I'm going to teach you Magizoology." The woman, Luna, said.

"Oh, yes." He said, blankly. Luna already called him by his name and even as 'my Prince'. Nobody else had called him that.

Though the lesson was fun.

Luna was a fun-loving person, making odd and funny  comments in between the lessons. She absolutely loved magical creatures. The way she talked about them showed just how passionate she was about the subject.
Plus, she was a Magizoologist. She knew about any and every magical being Tom asked about.

Though, it was odd when she insisted on calling him 'prince'. She reasoned with Tom by telling him that he would have to get used to the title anyways.

After the lesson ended, she accompanied him to the dining room.

Like yesterday, Harry was sitting at the table with a book in hand.

"Hello, Harry." Luna said.

Looking up, the man smiled at her and said, "Hello, Luna. How are you?"

"I'm good. You look happy, my Lord."

"Oh yes, Luna." He laughed and turned to Tom, "Well, sit down, sweet."

Tom took the seat and talked with Harry about his lessons. He observed that Luna's happiness and sunshine attitude seemed to brighten Harry too. The man laughed and joked about the silliest things.

Not that it wasn't affecting Tom. He too found himself sniggering when Luna told them about someone trying to play hide-and-seek with a bowtruckle, that too inside a forest of all places.

For Potions, Tilly took him to the potions lab in the manor.

Draco Malfoy was already inside the lab.

"Good afternoon, Lord Slytherin."

'Oh Merlin, he is a traditional pureblood.'

Traditional purebloods weren't easy to get friendly with. They'll act polite and respectful, but never friendly. They were always indifferent while in public.

From his previous tutors, Tom knew that Sirius, Ron, Fleur and Luna were purebloods. Though every person he had met since yesterday acted indifferent in public, they were friendly enough with him. Well, it was because of Harry. But the thing was, they were easy to talk with.

His current tutor wasn't just a traditional pureblood. He was a Malfoy. The Malfoy Heir.

Tom could not even comprehend how Harry was able to make a Malfoy his follower.

Malfoys were pureblood supremacists and hated anyone with even a drop of muggle blood.

"Good afternoon, Heir Malfoy."

Draco Malfoy was in his fourth year when Tom Riddle had joined Hogwarts.

The older boy had never interacted with Riddle while in school. He never had a reason to. Maybe it was because he never wanted to interact with a mudblood, or maybe he did not want to hurt the boy.

When Riddle had joined, he was too thin and looked like he never had a proper plate of food in his entire life.

Draco knew that his brother always created problems for the boy, but couldn't do anything about it. If he had done something, he was sure that his father might've disowned him.

Not only Riddle was a mudblood, he was poor.

A Malfoy had no reason to help such a person.

He always knew that the boy was far more intelligent than his yearmates and knew that he would meet him at least once again in his life.

But still, it was a huge surprise when he had read Riddle's name in the newspaper along with Harry's.

He remembered looking dumbly at the papers for over ten minutes after he read the news. It was his father who had whacked him in his head with his cane to bring him out his dazed state.

He knew that Riddle was good. But this?

In a courtship with Hadrian Peverell?

In a courtship with the Dark Lord?

Harry did not like to talk much about his personal life when the man was doing his Dark Lord duties (like raids, meetings, etc.). So, Draco never got to know much about Riddle immediately after the news.

All his brother did was complain about the boy. The jealous brat.

All he knew was that Riddle became the Slytherin Prince and had a court which consisted of Theodore Nott, Daphne and Astoria Greengrass, Graham Montague and Adrian Pucey.

They were all good.

When Harry told him about tutoring Riddle, he accepted immediately.

He wanted to know more about the Slytherin Lord.

The potions lesson was more tedious than his defence lessons.

Though Tom was good at it, he did not actually like the subject.

The smells, precise and continuous stirring, the heat, everything about potions irritated him.

And maybe, Snape was one of the reasons why he hated the subject.

Still, Draco Malfoy was a much, much better teacher than Snape.

The Malfoy Heir was patient and thorough when he taught. Instead of vanishing the potion when he made a mistake, the man made him think about how to save the potion, if possible, and helped him with it.

His initial 'Malfoy mask' lowered by the end of the lesson.

Not that the man was a cheery-Luna by any means, just much more amicable.

And, he was a better person than Abraxas Malfoy.

After the lesson ended, he spent his day with Harry, who did not have much work to do, in the man's office.

He lounged on one of the couches and read a book on Transfiguration, while Harry did his work.

His lessons with Harry were somewhat similar to the day before. Just this time, the level of the spells increased.

He had met almost every tutor who was going to teach him.

Just two more left.

He had a feeling that he was going to meet the infamous 'Demon Twins' the next day.

Chapter Text

The next morning, he felt slightly less tired from the work out.

At 12, he had Potions with Draco.

The blonde made him brew the Wolfsbane Potion.

They talked a bit about Abraxas, his arrogance and stupidity. Surprisingly, Draco wasn't too fond of his brother. Not that he hated him enough to kill, still, he wouldn't mind meeting his younger brother just once in a year.

Tom knew that every pureblood heir had a more difficult childhood than their siblings. Draco told him about the lessons he had everyday, starting from the age of seven, the punishments he got whenever he messed up, the rules to follow and how his parents even controlled the friends he made.

It was honestly sad, how Draco's father, Lord Lucius Malfoy, destroyed his own son's, heir's, childhood. The man had only one purpose in life- 'Don't destroy the family's name.'

The Malfoy Heir told him about how he had to keep his 'Malfoy mask' on, even with the people he called his closest friends.

After the lesson ended, Draco left the room with a sad smile and, "It is better now."

'Now,  I  have met  people   with  whom  I  can be myself.'

Tom sat anxiously on his seat, waiting for the Arithmancy tutor to come.

The door opened and a single butterfly entered the room.

He observed the little pink thing as it came closer to him and sat on his shoulder.
The butterfly looked harmless, so he let it be.

Just as the thought passed his mind, the butterfly vanished with a puff of smoke, which made him cough.

As the smoke disappeared, he blinked rapidly, trying to clear his vision.

'What  the  hell was  that ?'

A lock of his hair fell on his eyes, and he yelled.

Conjuring a mirror, he stared at his reflection in disbelief and horror.

Rainbow-colored.

His hair, eyebrows, eyelashes, eyes and even his bloody lips were rainbow-colored.

"WHAT THE FUCK!!"
(Harry is a bad influence on him.)

"We hope you like it, little Prince."

"We made this especially for you, little Lord!"

He spun on his heels and saw two red-haired, identical men standing inside the room, grinning at him unapologetically.

"Why. Did. You. Do. This?" He hissed, glaring daggers at the two.

He understood why everybody called them the demon twins.

"Just for", One said.

"One reason." The other twin continued.

"CONSTANT VIGILANCE!" They yelled together.

He almost cursed the twin, and blamed himself too for being stupid.

Constant Vigilance.

A nice motto.

The twins stopped grinning and said, sincerely, "We're sorry, little Prince."

"We'll remove the prank in a moment."

"But don't ever forget."

"CONSTANT VIGILANCE!"

They returned his hair and facial features back to original and introduced themselves.

"He's Gred."

"And he's Forge." Gred said. Tom knew that wasn't his name.

"And we are the famous."

"Handsome."

"Intelligent."

"Kind-hearted."

"Weasley Twins!" They ended together.

Tom knew he would have a killer headache by the end of the lesson, if the twins would speak like this.

"And, what's your real name?" He asked with a raised eyebrow.

"He Forge, he is asking our for real name."

"His Darkness sure knows how to choose a partner."

They grinned and gave him an exaggerated bow.

"I'm Fred." The one on the right said.

"And I'm George Weasley." The one on the left said.

Tom stared at the two. They looked too identical.
"How am I supposed to differentiate you two?"

"Well, that's on you." Fred said.

Sighing, he said, "Alright, I'm Tom Riddle."

The twins were going to teach him Ancient Runes and Arithmancy.

Both of them were good at the subject and were easy-going teachers.
Unlike Luna, they weren't completely sunshine and rainbows, but had a really good sense of humor.

They owned the biggest joke and prank supplies business in the market.

Not only that, they were good at inventing new stuff.

Apparently, they helped Harry create weapons for the raids.

(This was the first time he got to know what exactly his tutor helped the Dark Lord with.)

Though he was quite good at the two subjects, they inspired him to be creative.
He had never seen two completely opposite runes, one to protect and other to destroy, used together so smartly.
They used the two runes to make some sort of shield, which not only absorbed the attacking spells, but also threw them back at the attacker with thrice the power.

Similarly, they used fire and water, magic absorbing and magic repelling runes together.

According to them, Harry himself had created the last one.

The Dark Lord had a Mastery in both Ancient Runes and Arithmancy.

(Tom never knew that. Harry and his obsession for mysteries.)

This was his second favorite class after Defence, he decided.

They left the room together after the lesson ended, going to the dining room.

Harry greeted them merrily and talked with them and Tom throughout the lunch.

"So, Harrykins, how far have you reached, working on.... it?" George asked with a secretive look.

"The problem with it's range is solved."

"That's great!"

"Yes." Taking in Tom's eyes filled with curiosity, he said, "I'll show you what I'm working on this Sunday."

"Alright." He said and nodded.

The next lesson, both Cedric and Ron were present.

He stared at the vampire.

He looked too young to be a King.

"I'm over hundred years old, kid." Cedric said.

"Still, you look young." He commented.
Tom did not even ask how he knew. Everyone here was really good at reading a person's facial expressions.

Today, they were practicing sword fighting.

"Who even fights with a sword these days?" Tom asked as he ducked from Cedric's attack.

Ron was giving him pointers as they dueled.

"Because it is cool."

That stopped him. Which was a mistake, as Cedric hit him on his right arm.

Luckily, the swords were spelled so that they could not actually be cut. But it still hurt.

Tom concentrated on the duel and asked incredulously, "You're teaching me because this is cool!?"

"Also because many magical beings value this skill. Before so many spells were included, not only No-Majs, but also wizards used swords and shields to fight." Cedric explained as he dodged Tom's strike effortlessly.

They continued this till 5.30, as Tom dueled both Cedric and Ron.

Not that he won any fight, both his opponents were very experienced, but he got better with every strike. Maybe one day, he'll even defeat Cedric.

His next three days went on in a similar fashion.

He woke up, exercised, had breakfast, did some reading, lessons, lunch, lessons, lazing around along with some light reading, lessons, dinner and sleep.

This is how his week went.

Though he liked his lessons, he wanted his schedule to change.

He was on holiday for Merlin's sake!

Luckily on Sunday, he did not have to join Harry for his workout, nor did he had any lessons.

Finally!

He woke up late, at 11 am and had breakfast at 11.45.

After that, he spent his day, lazing around the manor, till 2 PM.

It was honestly fun, to eat fruits and drink some juice, sitting near a pool, in a big manor.

Harry had told him that they would be going for lunch outside.

Turns out, it was a date.

They went to a restaurant, had lunch and then went shopping.

They went to a shop to buy robes for the Ministry Ball, which was in less than four weeks.

Harry told him that the clothes will take time to get ready, and that it was better if they had the clothes a week prior to the Ball.

They spent more than an hour in the tailor's shop, going over the designs and color.

Tom was honestly tired from the whole ordeal.

After leaving the shop, they returned back to the manor.

Harry told him that he would be taking Tom to his headquarters after an hour.

Chapter Text

An hour later, Tom followed Harry outside the wards of the Peverell Manor.

The man explained to him that since many people visit his manor, it would be risky to use the fireplace to floo to the headquarters. You never know that your guest might be a spy.

As they reached outside, Harry apparated them to a forest.

A path led them deep inside the forest, which was covered with thick foliage.
Since it was nearing dusk, the place was filled with an orange flow.

After walking deeper into the forest for a few minutes, they stopped at a very old looking tree.

Harry did some complicated wand movements and suddenly, a gust of wind passed through the place.

Harry took hold of his hand and walked ahead.

It felt like passing through a waterfall. An invisible one.

Once, where there had been a dense forest, a looming castle was standing in front of them.

It was dark, tall, huge and widespread. A gothic castle.

It was surrounded by trees and wall. A thick fog was spread throughout the surrounding trees.

In spite of being dark, the place gave off a neutral feeling, at least to him. Yes, it was intimidating. But what mattered more, is that it gave off an aura of power.

And maybe, it was Harry's presence that made it less scary.

(He was sure any sane person would think of this place as scary on their first visit. The dark sky wasn't helping the matter.)

They went through huge gates which had pointy ends on it and which, according to Harry, was the only entrance to the castle.

He glanced at Harry.

The man looked relaxed but powerful.

Though he looked like he was maintaining a balance between his Dark Lord persona and how he normally behaved when he was with Tom.

(Like a Dark Lord on vacation.)

The Slytherin had seen him behaving like the Dark Lord when they had tortured Umbridge.

The man acted very cold and indifferent like that. Calculating. A bit insane too, when killing.

This place was the Dark Lord's headquarters. He had a feeling that Harry would never act like Hadrian Peverell here.

Here, he was Dark Lord Hades.

It warmed his heart, knowing Harry was trying to balance his two personalities here, for him.

They went through numerous doors and rooms. The place was fitting for a headquarter.

There were a few portraits, armors, even weapons on the wall.

From the windows, one could get a clear view of the forest outside.

Looking through one of the windows, he saw many people outside on the grounds. Staring at them intensely, he realized two things.

They were vampires. And almost everyone was as young as him.

"Who are they?" He asked Harry.

"Newly made vampires."

"So many?" He asked, surprised. And that too young?

"Yes." Harry said simply and they moved forward.

Later, he got to know that those were the children who were kidnapped in the raids. The muggle children were given four options: One, to become a vampire at the age of seventeen; two, to become a werewolf (anyone older than thirteen, since werewolves grow old); three, to go back to the Muggle world with their memories erased; and four, to die.

Most of them chose the first option or second option. Despite the pain, super strength attracted many of them. Magical world seemed much more appealing than the muggle world.

Very few chose the third option. Who would want to go back to the muggle world, penniless and an orphan?

And no one chose the fourth one.

The children were brought up in excellent condition. Some were even adopted by the werewolf and vampire families, sometimes even witches and wizards. (So far, only those who were loyal to the Dark Lord.)

If you forget about the fact that their choices were to either become a creature or die, and that their parents were murdered by the same people who brought them up, their lives were good. In some cases, even better than their previous lives in the muggle world. 

Those children who were magical, were adopted by magical families.

Though one thing was required by the children.

Be loyal to the Dark Lord.

Somewhere in his heart, Tom knew nothing about this was right. The children, they suffered, one way or the other.  But Tom turned away from that thought. Tom did not care. He would not judge what Harry did. If it were upto him, he would've left those children on the streets.

Harry had taken him to two different rooms which he called the 'Red Room' and 'Blue Room'.

The Red Room was filled with many different kind of weapons. Knives, daggers, swords, katanas, spears, arrows, guns, shields and even missiles and bombs.

Also torture instruments like Blood Quil and stuff.

Apparently, they created the most destructive weapons using both muggle and magical knowledge.

Every single weapon had its own variation.

Some of them could kill in a second, some could melt, freeze, paralyze, transport the opponents to the dungeons or make the person hallucinate.

When he asked Harry why they didn't simply use spells, Harry answered, "These are emergency weapons, for when we exhaust our magic. Or when we don't want to leave any magical signature behind."

The Blue Room also consisted of things used for raids and spying.

Hidden cameras, large-scale portkeys, instant darkness powders, communications devices, accessories with protective and glamour charms, many different potions like liquid bad luck, poisons and much more.

There was even a map of Hogwarts in the room, though it looked quite old.

Where the Red Room was intimidating, this room was full of wonder.

And that too most of them were invented by people younger than twenty-five!

Harry told him that they, he and the Weasley twins, were working on the communication devices for their raids.

He also told him about how exactly they attacked a place. And honestly, it was genius.

Before attacking a place, they sent their magical cameras to check the number of people who entered and exited the place. After that, they created wards around the place, subtly. First, which made people inside stay there and people outside to not enter. Then came a variation of the Notice-Me-Not spell. It made people not question why nobody is entering or exiting the place.

Then came the anti-apparition, portkey and floo wards along with wards to keep the aurors out. Finally a special ward which made the muggle network inside the ward go haywire.
(The Dark Lord was very careful with the Statue of Secrecy.)

Then they attacked.

By the time the aurors even got to know, half of the people were killed or injured.

Though his explanation was quite vague. Their attacks were much more strategized.

That weekend, nobody except the young vampires and their tutors were inside the castle.

Harry showed him around the whole place.

There were numerous training rooms, potions labs, a hospital wing, some rooms to stay in during emergency, more than a dozen lounges, a big meeting room (which had a throne) and a ballroom.

Outside the castle, there were many greenhouses, a lake and a huge forest.

Harry promised him that once he was ready, he'll introduce Tom to his followers outside the Inner Circle. Until then, the Slytherin had to work on making himself better.

Though Tom had pledged to himself that he'll meet the followers before the start of his seventh year.

Chapter Text

For the next two weeks, Tom worked tirelessly. Exercises, lessons and reading were the only things he did for during the two weeks.

Well, except for Sundays.

After Harry and Tom had returned from the headquarters, the Slytherin Prince wanted nothing more than to duel and practise. Though, Harry stopped him, stating that he had more than a month to do so. Also, because he wanted to take him out on a date.

As much as Tom was put off by not getting to practice some obscure spell, he enjoyed the evening.

They went to a Muggle theatre to watch a movie.
(Apparently, Harry liked the concept of muggle crime organizations. And movies based on them.)

For dinner, they did not eat in some posh restaurant, which was a surprise. The place they had gone to was a magical nightclub.

It was the one of the best night of his entire life.

They ate, drank and danced together.

Fleur was right, Harry was a very good dancer.

The people of the club were either too busy, or drunk to even spare a glance at them. Which was good. Tom had never seen Harry laugh so much in public. He spun Tom around as if they had danced together their entire life.

The dim lights, loud music, Harry.

Tom loved everything.

The next Sunday, his friends had surprised him and visited the manor.

He did talk with his friends over letters and sometimes floo call over the vacation, but had not once visited them.

They had asked Harry for his permission to visit the manor and decided to come.

It was going to be a nice morning for Tom. He was going to wake up late.

After training vigorously for six days, it was his holiday. His Sunday holiday. Not even Harry woke him up early that day.

So, his irritation during the breakfast was plausible.

Five demons had disturbed his precious sleep. That too at nine in the morning. Nine!

He had cursed and threw them outside his room.

Harry and Sirius did not even blink an eye when they saw five Gryffindor themed children sitting near the dining table.
(Though Sirius said something like "Yay Gryffindor!")

Remus only smirked and said, "I told you so."

"Oh come on, Tom! We're sorry. I swear we didn't know you liked your sleep so much." Adrian said.

Tom only huffed grumpily and continued eating.

"Just wait till he drinks his tea." Harry said.

It wasn't exactly the tea that made him forgive them. They were at the manor for only a few hours, being angry at them wouldn't do any good. They did not even know that Tom had so many lessons everyday.

For all they knew, Harry was the only one teaching him.

After Remus, Sirius and Harry left the manor for work, the teenagers sat in one of the lounges.

Tom removed the spell and greeted them happily.
"It's good to see you all."

They hugged him one by one.

Daphne asked him, "You aren't always so ill-tempered when you wake up early. What was the matter today?"

"Nothing. Just slept really late yesterday."

Theo grinned and asked, "Late huh?"

Sneering playfully at him, Tom said, "Get your head out of the gutter, Nott. We just went to a club yesterday."

Gasping, Astoria started asking him excitedly, "A club!? Please tell me everything about it. In detail! Daphne had went to one last week too." Pouting, she continued, "Mother and father won't let me go. Said I was too young."

Laughing, he started telling her about his experience.

Three hours later, they left the manor.

Tom promised Astoria, Daphne and Graham that he would visit their manor at least once during the remainder of the vacation.
(Theo's and Adrian's parents were supremacists. They did not tolerate the idea of having someone with muggle blood inside their ancient houses. Not that Tom cared.)

After they left, Tom relaxed in his room.

Unfortunately, Harry was too busy that day. So no handsome Dark Lord to spend time with.

And he was too tired to even open a book.

So after lunch, he decided to fly.

In the past, he hated the idea of flying on a piece of wood. His experience of the flying lesson during the first year made him hate it.

But Harry, who loved flying, was blessed with the unfair advantage of having the most beautiful eyes in the world. It was ironic. People called his green eyes as demonic, but Tom only found them enchanting. Hard to resist. Hard to gaze away from.

So when the man asked him with his beautiful eyes, charming smile and a small 'please' to join him to fly, Tom couldn't say no. He couldn't.

Though the first time was a disaster, a repeat of the first year, Tom did not give up.

Gradually, with Harry's guidance, he learnt to fly.

For the next one hour, he raced with the faires in the garden.

Though he could not understand what they said, they were fun to play with.

After flying, he took a bath and once again relaxed in his room.

A few minutes later, Aurora found him and asked, "What are you doing, Tom?"

"I'm bored." He said, lying with his face on the pillow.

She was silent for some time.

"Hmm. I know what we can do! Follow me, I'll show you something I'm sure you will like."

Having nothing else to do, he followed her.

They walked for over five minutes and reached a room.

It was like a small library, but different.

There were many small knickknacks on the shelves, a few bean bags and a small table.

He followed Aurora inside the room and sat on one of the bean bags.

The place looked like it belonged to a teenager who loved collecting things.

Aurora took out something from the shelf and floated beside him.

"Open this."

The thing was a picture book.

He opened the book and went through it.

The first picture was of three people. James, Lily and a baby Harry.

They looked so happy.

The next one had Sirius and Remus with them too. They looked so young, so happy. Stress-free. So full of life.

Seeing their picture, he realized they still carried the weight of the past. Of their best friends' death.

The world felt so cruel, as he gazed at the happy family.

The next pictures were of Harry, during his time at Ilvermony.

A eleven year Harry, who looked so sweet and hateful at the same time.
His smile was polite, but his eyes were filled with hatred. In some ways, it reminded him of his own younger self.

The next ones included a brunette and a redhead.

His hate in the little boy's eyes had lessened.

A thirteen year old Harry was laughing alongside his two bestfriends.

The number of people in the pictures increased.

Luna, Neville, Fred, George, a redheaded girl, Sirius, Remus.

There were some which were taken inside Peverell Manor too.

More people were added.

Cedric, Draco, a silver haired girl who looked like Fleur.

"See these pictures, Harry and some people from his batch, they had decided to go on a long trip after their graduation." Aurora said.

True enough, the next pictures included more fifteen people.
Inside a restaurant, a sea side, a forest, a castle, a muggle mall. There were so many of them.

A picture of Harry holding a puppy.
(He liked that one a lot.)

"These are of the whole group, after the youngest members graduated."

The next pictures included almost everyone he knew, except two girls.

They were all partying and seemed drunk.

The Knights.

Some of the pictures had Aurora included in them too.

His eyes lingered on one picture.

Harry's hair were a mess, cheeks a bit flushed from the alcohol. His shirt was unbuttoned on the upper half, chest exposed. He was grinning drunkenly and mischievously at the camera.

Chapter Text

The pictures of Harry during his school days were fun to see. A younger version of the Dark Lord, with less responsibilities.

The pictures showed the literal transition in Harry.

From a hateful child who was always alone to a powerful adult with people he could trust.

Tom looked at the pictures of Harry with his friends.

Ironically, it was what Dumbledore supposedly preached that saved them both from becoming someone too hateful and insane.

Power of friendship.

An incredulous laugh escaped his lips.

"What is it?" Aurora asked him curiosily.

"Dumbledore and his idiocy."

"Ahh."

"When did Harry actually.... made you?" He asked.

"A few days before his fifteenth birthday."

"He created a living being when he was fourteen?" He asked, surprised beyond belief.

"Not actually." She said, frowning a bit.
"Now listen, Harry does not like talking about it. It's embarrassing for him. When he says that it was a mistake, he means it literally. A month before his 15th birthday, he was working on making something similar to the non-magical robots. Something to store knowledge which cannot be forgotten. His idea was to create a robot, not something with their own thoughts." Aurora looked disgusted at the thought of a robot.

"Now for creating such a thing, knowledge of many different subjects was required. Also, it was very dangerous. One mistake and boom! Everything was gone. The room Harry was working in had many, many volatile objects in it. The room was near the gardens."

"One day, he forgot to lock the door and a fairy entered the room. Harry does not know what happened that night, but when he came back, instead of the robot body, a small child resembling a fairy was inside the room. He got angry and all." She said waving her hand, like it was a common thing.

"On questioning the fairies, he got to know that one of them was missing. He suspects that the fairy who went inside the room messed up with the runes and potions and lost their life. Now, he was curious as to what exactly I was, so he did not send me away. Unlike human babies, I grew up fast and can live twice as long as humans."

"Wow. Can you do magic?" Tom asked. He had never seen Aurora do any spell.

"Yes, though it is fairy magic. Also, Harry did achieve what he wanted. I can remember everything that I learn. Also, I am sort of his personal assistant."

"Personal assistant?"

"Yes, I take care of the manor, manage his reports, correspondence, keep an eye on the prisoners and make sure that every place he owns is secure. And my added responsibility is to take care of you."

"I don't need a babysitter!" He said, indignantly.

"No you don't. That's why you don't see me feeding you and running behind you." Aurora said, each word dripping with sarcasm. "I just make sure you are not hurt or attacked. This place has the best wards surrounding it, yet you can be injured. A simple slip can kill you."

Tom looked away, feeling awkward. Okay, that made sense.

Touching his hand lightly, Aurora said in a soft voice, "Tom, I know that you're not an object which needs to be hidden away and protected. Hell, even Harry knows that. It is the reason why he trains you. When the world comes to know that the Dark Lord has a lover, the lover is targeted more than the Dark Lord. Even after he wins, you will be the one facing judgment and criticism."

"That is why he hasn't introduced you to his followers yet. They know that you're close to the Dark Lord. But when you stand in front of them, you'll have to face them alone." After contemplating for some moments, she said, "Harry will not like this, but let me tell you. Fifteen people till now have been offered huge amounts of money just to kill you."

"WHAT!?" His face paled and froze. "How-?" He tried to form a sentence, but his voice cracked at the end. His heartbeat started to increase.

Since when did it start? Who was approached? Has he ever crossed paths with one? Merlin, he and Harry had gone out so many times. What if somebody was there to kill him!?

Kill.

Die.

He did not want to die.

Death.

He was scared of dying.

This is why he wanted to create the horcruxes.

Only a second was needed to kill him.

And Harry knew this. He knew that somebody was trying to kill him. Why was he being so careless about his life? The man was bloody immortal, Tom wasn't.

Breathing started to become difficult.

He heard someone calling out his name, but it felt distant.

He could die.

With that last thought, he lost consciousness.

Harry glared at Aurora, fuming internally.

That stupid fairy! This was the reason why did not inform Tom about the murder attempts.

He exhaled, trying to control his rage.

Fifteen minutes earlier, he had received a letter from Aurora which stated that Tom had a panic attack and fell unconscious.

Naturally, he was worried and immediately returned to the manor.

Tom was lying on his bed when he returned. The boy was pale and breathing slowly.

After Aurora told him the reason why Tom was in this condition, he had crucioed the stupid half-fairy.

What right did she have?

At times like this, he wished Aurora was the way he wanted. A robot.
But she was more useful with her own thoughts.

Harry contemplated on how to deal with Tom now.

His darling would be very vexed with him, that was for sure. He hated people keeping things from him. Not that Harry did not want to tell him about the murder attempts. He had decided to break the news after the Ball.

News like this scared people. Especially those like Tom who were terrified by the notion of dying.

He did not want Tom to live with the fear of dying for the next one or two years.

Sighing, he carded his fingers through the soft, fluffy brown hair.

Time to face the music.

"Wake up, sweet." He murmured softly and gently touched his shoulders.

"Mhmm."

Harry always found waking up Tom fascinating. The boy's face would scrunch up in a really cute way.
(There were not many things Harry thought were cute.)

Tom opened his eyes and looked around with bleary eyes.

"Wha... Harry." The younger boy said as he noticed him.

Harry smiled softly at Tom and helped him up.

As Tom sat in a half-sitting position, he remembered why he had fainted.

During some other time, he might've felt embarrassed for fainting, but now, he was hurt and angry. A bit scared too.

"Why did you not tell me?" He asked Harry, trying not to show his anger.

As soon as he asked the question, Harry, who was calm, suddenly tensed and his eyes lit with fury.

"I was planning to tell you later." He replied. The man's voice held barely contained fury.

Who was the man angry with?

He started speaking venomously, "Why not just tell me before? Someone might've killed me when you were planning to tell me later! While you-"

"Hey."

Sirius Black was standing in the doorway. His face was pale yet calm.

"Let me talk with him, Harry. Please." The man pleaded.

Tom glanced at Harry and almost flinched.

The man looked so, so furious. He started to feel the waves of strong, angry dark magic.

"Harry, please."

The green-eyed man stood up and swooped out of the room without a word.

Sirius entered the room, his face uncharacteristically serious.

He sat on the chair beside the bed, the one Harry was sitting on.

"Is he- is he so angry with me?" He asked the dogfather.

"No. Not with you. He is furious with Aurora. With Dumbledore. A bit with himself too."

"Dumbledore?"

"Who do you think is contacting the assassins, kid?" Sirius asked with a raised eyebrow.

"Dumbledore?" He asked, incredulously.

Appointing assassins did not seem like Dumbledore's style. Manipulating and demeaning, yes, but outright asking someone to kill him without any reason.

"The man does not go himself, Tom. He has people to do so. The man isn't as saintly as he seems." Sirius said darkly.

Tom, he did not understand why, still felt surprised. He knew that the old man hated him, but contacting assassins to kill him?

"Why haven't they..... tried anything yet?" He asked.

"One, because they don't like Dumbledore. They know that if the man is caught, he will rat them out. Two, because the money he offers is too little, considering that you're in a relationship with Harry. Three, because some assassins are loyal to the Dark Lord. And four, they've tried. And failed miserably."

"Oh."

"Don't worry kid, hell will freeze over before he lets anything happen to you. And don't worry, he's not angry with you. Just let him cool down. Good thing he went away. Somebody is going to get tortured today for sure." Sirius said, finally laughing.

"Why didn't he just tell me before then?" He asked the older man, still confused.

"Because he did not want you to lose confidence in yourself. The Ministry Ball is in a few days too. It is your debut in the world. Assassins are nasty business, unsettling even the best of us. He was worried that it would affect you a lot."

"Oh." Thank Merlin, Sirius stopped him before he could say something he would no doubt regret afterwards. Though he was still a bit annoyed that Harry did not want to tell him about all this sooner.

"Don't worry. When he comes back, talk over all this. You both are new to all this relationship and stuff. The two of you need to talk over all this."

Getting up, Sirius stood up and said, "Well, you need to rest. Harry will be back after a few hours. Rest, kiddo."

Tom sank back into the pillows and closed his eyes.

When Harry had returned back that day, they talked over keeping things from each other.

In the end, Harry accepted to include him in his Dark Lord business.

The next week, Tom got to know more about how Harry managed his followers and work.

How they were slowly starting to target Dumbledore's main supporters.

How the Dark Army operates, who worked for them and all.

He was given a day-off on Friday, the day before the ball, so that he won't be tired.

That day, he and Harry just blazed around together, the older man telling him about the different people attending the Ball, their work, achievements and all.

Tom felt extremely excited and nervous for the ball next day.

Chapter Text

Fifteen minutes before the commencement of the Ball, Tom was standing awkwardly in front of the mirror in his room.

He wondered how Harry had made him buy these clothes that day.

They were just too lavish.

His clothes were blue, white and gold themed.

Originally, he wanted to wear green, but Harry insisted on making him wear blue, saying that he always wore green. Tom thought that the man just wanted to see Tom wearing his favourite color.

Still, despite the 'too much lavishness', the outfit was good.

It fitted him perfectly.

Exhaling a breath, he turned towards the door. 'There's nothing to do now.'

As he reached the hall, he stopped suddenly.

Harry was leaning on one of the tables in the room, deep in thought.

He was wearing a shirt which was black on one side and white on the other. It exposed his chest and stomach. A black and red cloak which had intricate silver designs on it was tied around his shoulder.

He looked good.

And then, one more thought entered his mind.

As he stepped inside the room, Harry noticed him.

"Darling, you look absolutely gorgeous."

"Thank you. Can I ask you something?" He asked, biting his lower lip.

"Of course, darling."

"Why are my clothes so extravagant and yours so..... exposed?" He asked, staring shamelessly at Harry's chest.

The man laughed and pulled him towards himself, putting his hands on Tom's waist.
"Well, because it's your first time attending the Ball. On the top of that, you are Lord Slytherin. A British pureblood house member. They tend to be more extravagant. You should've seen Draco last year, he had three more layers of clothes on him, compared to you." Harry said, chuckling at the memory.

"And what about you?"

"I quite like these clothes." The man said, smirking at him.

Feeling brave, he trailed his hands on the man's chest. "I admit, you look really good." A bit possessive too.

"Thank you." The man said, kissing the skin near his neck. "Though we should go now."

They took a portkey to the place where the Ball was being held.

Each portkey was made specifically for the event. The authorities could keep a track on who used the portkey and who it was given too.
The security for the event was very strict. Many scholars, celebrities and influential members from all around the world attended the Ball.

After the unsettling experience of the portkey, Tom opened his eyes. He glanced around in awe.

They appeared in a beautifully decorated room, where many people portkeyed and were complimenting it too.

Harry led him through the huge door, which no doubt led to the ballroom.

The place was magnificent.

Glass chandeliers, huge windows, high ceiling which was decorated with heavy golden and silver designs. Tables were filled with delicacies from around the world. Soft music was playing in the background.

Many richly dressed people were moving around, talking, with each other.

Tom could understand why this ball was a big deal.

Almost every famous person from the wizarding world was present here.

He could see the captain of the Holyhead Harpies talking with Celestina Warbeck. The British Minister was laughing at a joke made by Gilderoy Lockhart, who was a well-known author. The Headmasters and Headmistress of Ilvermorny, Beauxbatons, Durmstrang and Castelobruxo were conversing together. Martin Hale, a renowned Potion Master for creating Veritaserum, was sitting with Nicholas and Perenelle Flamel. Many veela, vampires, goblins and werewolves were present too.

Harry touched his arm and said quietly, "Come on, Tom."

Tom realized that he had actually stopped walking and hurried forward.

"This place is.. wow." He said in awe.

If the decoration weren't enough, the people present made everything worth it.

Harry tugged him towards some people, who were, no doubt, politicians.

"Hadrian!" A blonde, middle-aged man exclaimed, when he noticed the two of them.

"Jasper, it's good to see you again. How have you been?" Harry asked, smiling at the man.

Though the words sounded happy and genuine, Tom could sense the difference. Harry's smile was smaller than when he greeted someone he genuinely liked. His voice was softer, more polite than cheerful.

"I'm all good. How have you been? Teaching at Hogwarts, aren't you? I always knew that you had a knack for teaching. Congratulations, by the way, on the courtship. You finally found someone!" The man laughed and patted Harry on the shoulder.

Harry introduced him to the group, who were all American politicians and supported Harry in the bills passed by MACUSA.

Except for the initial slips, Tom could say that he did a good job.

The group was charmed by him and liked his ideas. Unlike Britain, other countries were not prejudiced against dark magic and its users, so he could easily speak about his ideas and the discrimination faced by Dark wizards by the Ministry. They were in awe with him being a Parselmouth.

It was also fun to watch as Harry subtly insulted Minister Fudge and Lockhart on their faces, without them knowing.
Though the people surrounding them did, if their snickering was anything to go by.

Tom and Harry moved around and talked with many different people.

Tom also realized just how much influence Harry held.

Almost every person they met simply loved  Harry, nodding eagerly at his every idea, smiling and laughing at him.

He smirked smugly at yet another person who attempted to flirt with Harry. Whenever someone did so, with either of them, Harry would pull Tom closer, kiss his cheek and show off their rings to the offending person.

"You see the Veela there, talking with the German Minister?" He heard Harry say.

"Yes." The girl in question was very beautiful and had an aura of power around her.

"She's Gabrielle Delacour, Fleur's younger sister. She's the next in line to become the Veela Head."

"Why her? Why not the elder sister?" Tom asked, staring at the blonde girl.

"Because she's a more powerful Veela than Fleur. Also because Fleur has no interest in becoming the Head." Harry answered.

"And she's your... friend?" He asked cryptically.

"Closer than her sister."

Tom was surprised. The girl was almost his age. And she was a Knight?

"Yes. I met her during the Yule holidays when I was fourteen. Saved her life. Since then, we've been friends. We kept correspondence for years, before she came to know about.... that. Surprisingly, she wanted to join."

Gabrielle Delacour suddenly turned towards them and made her way towards them.
"Harry!"  She whispered when she was close enough, so nobody heard her except Tom and Harry.

"Gabrielle. You look lovely." The man said and grinned, embracing the girl.

"You too. Look at yourself."  The girl said.

As they separated, her eyes fell on Tom.

She smiled at him and spoke, "Hello, Tom." Her voice was musical.

"Hello, Miss Delacour." He shook hands with her.

Laughing, the Veela said, "Call me Gabrielle."

Tom observed while Gabrielle acted warm and friendly with them, she was colder than Harry when she talked with others.

He also saw Cedric talking to some witches and wizards in one corner.

The vampire raised a glass of whatever he was drinking in their direction when Tom looked at him and continued his conversation.

Tom had also listened to many people bad-mouth Dumbledore, much to his delight.

The food which was served for dinner was downright heavenly.

He was almost sad when he finished the dessert.

After the dinner, people started the dance.

The Slytherin Lord had the misfortune of meeting Lord Malfoy before the dance began. He understood where Malfoy Jr. got his arrogance from. Though, Harry did a great job at insulting the man and shooing him off.

He really wasn't fond of the Malfoys.

Tom was thankful for the lessons given by Fleur. He saw many people laughing and insulting the people when they even made a mistake while dancing.

Yet, he enjoyed the dance.

Dancing with Harry, he would never get tired of it.

The man danced effortlessly.

And he looked so beautiful, smiling and laughing.

Tom wanted to kiss the man. He did not care about the crowd and the people watching them.

Tom wanted to kiss him.

And he did so.

Chapter Text

Tom wanted to kiss him.

And he did so.

Harry's lips were warm and soft.

Tom pulled him closer and held his shoulders tightly.

He had heard many stories about kisses, some said sparks appeared, some said it wasn't like that.

Tom's mind just blanked and the only thing he could focus on were the lips which were on his.

After the initial shock, Harry kissed him back.

And Merlin, wasn't it good?

He pulled Tom even closer, making it difficult to to separate who was who, from the viewer's perspective.

And it was quite scandalous too.

Tom heard people starting to whisper, some cooing, some sharp words of disapproval.

Yet, Harry did not stop kissing him.

Maybe he simply did not care?

After some time (he did not know how long), Harry moved back.

Tom turned red when they finally separated and looked down. 'Merlin, what was I thinking? That too in front of everyone?'

Though he loved the kiss. Every second of it.

"Let's go somewhere else." Harry said.

There was a really faint blush on his face too. 'Good thing I'm not the only one being affected.'

Tom nodded silently, wanting to go away from the crowd.

Harry held his hands and tugged him towards a door.

The door led to a balcony.

The night sky was inky blue. Stars spread across the sky like glitter and the crescent moon shone ethereally. The place was surrounded by a forest. Every once in a while, something glowing came out, casting light on the leaves, making them shine like emeralds, and went back in between the trees. Lanterns were floating around near the balcony.

It was all so beautiful.

As soon as the doors closed behind them, Harry turned him around and kissed him softly.

Tom closed his eyes and kissed back.

"Did you not want it to be special?"

"Who said it wasn't?"

That was enough to make his mind and heart go all mushy.

The next day, the Daily Prophet and many other newspapers from around the world had printed a big picture of both of them kissing, on their front page.

Sirius laughed at his tomato-red face when he saw the papers.

"Great, now everybody knows that." He grumbled, glaring at the innocent toast.

"You did kiss him in front of everyone." Remus, who was laughing alongside Sirius, said.

"True. Not that I didn't like it. If you want, we can do it again, darling." Harry said, smirking at him and pulled him forward to kiss him.

Three days after the Ball, he got a letter from Astoria, requesting (read demanding) him to visit their manor the next Sunday. Everyone from the Court would be there.

They wanted to know everything that happened during the Ball.

('Everything' was written with red ink and underlined twice in the letter.)

'Why do I like these people?' Tom questioned himself, as he sent her a letter accepting the request (demand).

Hedwig, who was sitting on his shoulder, gave him an affectionate hoot, she loved him, and flew away.

Tom heard some hissing voices coming from the hallway and ran away.

Though Nagini was happy for him, she became more..... protective.

She did not let Harry come closer than one meter to him. If the man found it irritating, he did not show it and simply laughed it off. No doubt, not wanting to hurt Tom's old companion.

"Nagini,  you   should  leave my master alone.  You're  fortunate that Master likes  your  human, or else you  would've  been flayed alive by my Master. He does not  like  anyone  getting  in  his way. Even when he was little he did not like it."

"Your Master  should   not  touch my Tommy so much then! He is just a  hatchling !  What if he mates with my little Tommy?"

"He will one day, Nag."

"Sshut up, Sserene! And  don't  call me that!"

"Sure, Nag."

Albus glared at yet another refusal by an assassin.

This was the twentieth person he had approached. Twentieth!

The reasons were all the same.

Not enough money was being offered. Not wanting to be involved with Peverell. Or simple note with the words ''I don't like you''.

Albus wanted to kill all those stupid, useless, killing machines! How dare they refuse an offer of 1000 galleons to kill a brat!?

He wanted to pull his hair.

Everything he had planned for Riddle was falling down! Riddle was seventeen now. No wards by the Ministry would be present around his orphanage now. He had planned to kill the boy himself, this summer.

The dirty dark wizard should've died by now.

But no!

Peverell, a shame, disgrace for being a light wizard, took him to his manor.

The ancient manor which only a selected few people had seen in centuries! A place which Albus himself hadn't visited.

Riddle was there!

He was there and had a free reign over ancient times, books, artefacts and whatnot.

Albus shuddered to think what would happen if the devil-boy got to know about the Deathly Hallows.

If it wasn't enough, today's newspaper was like salt and lemon combined on his wounds.

The Peverell brat had taken Riddle to the International Ministry Ball! A ball which he himself had visited only thrice.

He was ashamed to admit that it maybe his own fault, just a little bit, for insulting the prestigious Dark witches, wizards and creatures. It wasn't his fault that the world did not understand how dangerous those scum are!

The icing on the cake, which was a disaster, was the Dark Lord Hades.

Just who was this new player in the game?

Though it worried him greatly that this person had a hallow, he was sure it would be the only one.

There were no reports of thefts from Peverell. And he knew for sure that they had the Invisibility Cloak.

(He had seen James use it many times in Hogwarts. Before his death, Albus had asked him to give it to him, so that he could protect it, but the boy kept it in Gringotts.)

Albus was sure that this upstart won't be much of a threat. Though, the person had gifted him with a wonderful opportunity.

A Dark Lord to kill.

Albus had a plan, it was really vague, yet it was a start. A chance to bring himself to the glory he deserved.

Somehow, he had to make it look like Riddle had joined the Hades. It would be easy, since the brat was of age. Next, get him caught for some crime. Riddle was a Dark wizard, surely he did some killing or torture people for fun right? If he does not, Albus will make him.

The second part was to make Peverell rely on him after Riddle is dealt with. A "I told you so" will do a good job.

Then make Peverell do all his work. (Albus was a leader, he did not do measly things like finding some Dark Lords and going after them.)

Next, help Peverell during the battle with Hades. Albus knew that he could manage that easily. Traps and all.

Final part, after Hades is dead, kill Peverell.

Easier than killing a fly.

Haha!

Albus smirked to himself.

There was no need for assassins now.

He will be able to lead the world towards the light again.

Chapter Text

For the next week, Tom concentrated on his training.

He found out that he preferred guns over daggers, that Magical History was really interesting, that Fred and George along with Remus and Sirius were a very dangerous combination, that Hermione and Luna could kill you with a rusty knife and get away with it, and that Neville Longbottom was fucking insane. (He almost made Tom drink one of his poisons to understand its effects)

Tom also visited the Greengrass Manor, (Lord and Lady Greengrass were really sweet people) and had to go through Astoria's and Theo's fan moments.

"Oh my God!"

"That's a Muggle term, Astoria." Tom pointed out but was ignored.

"You kissed him in front of everyone!?!"
The girl asked with a wide, excited smile on her face.

Theo too, looked eager to know. Leaning forward, he said, "Tell us everything."

On Saturday, he was going to attend Harry's 'Dark Lord' meeting with the inner circle members.

He was sitting inside Harry's room, which was a first. Tom had never seen his room.

And it was way too different from his room. Harry's room looked very minimalist, compared to the traditional manor. Out of place.

At present, Harry was standing in front of the mirror and tying the front of his robes, which were blue and black in color. Tom was wearing similar robes, just in green and black. Both their robes had protective runes stitched onto them.

"Why do we need a mask anyways? We aren't going outside." Tom said as he fiddled with his mask.

"If the manor is attacked, you can just wear the mask within seconds, rather than to spend time on some spell and risk your identity."

"Who will attack your manor?"

"You never know." The man shrugged and walked towards him.

Pulling Tom up from the chair, he made his way to the door.

"Then they will come to know that you, as in Hadrian, have some sort of connection with the Dark Lord."

"They will."

"What about you then?"

"I'll become an international fugitive." Looking at him, he continued as a  frustrated sound escaped Tom's mouth, "I know what you mean, Tom. But you need to understand. Every person attending today's meeting is my responsibility. If something happens to even one of them, it will be due to my negligence." The man said firmly.
"Come on, let's go now."

The room they had entered was in the center of the manor, on the top floor. Even if someone broke in, which was highly unlikely, they will spend years finding the room. It was hidden under layers of enchantment, just like the headquarters.

The room had a long table, many shelves, some weapons in the corner, a board with many pictures (a few of which were crossed out), a throne-like and many other things.

A few minutes later, twelve people apparated inside the room at once.

"My Lord, Dumbledore hasn't approached a single assassin since the day after the Ministry Ball. He seems to be focusing on Lord Hades and the Reapers now." Fred said.

"Many people have seen him near the residence of the people who've survived the raids, our main target's family members, the Aurors and Unspeakables. People have started whispering about how 'Dumbledore has finally started working on this issue'." George continued, sneering at the old man's name.

"He has concocted some sort of plan." Hermione said.

"I know. And it will be a genius plan." The Dark Lord said, deep in thought.

Tom had came to know that Harry did not underestimate Dumbledore. Nevertheless, it was a smart move. Dumbledore did not gain so much power by being stupid.

"We'll do better then, my Lord."  Ginevra, Ginny as everyone called her, said.

By the looks she was giving him, he did not think that she would appreciate Tom calling her as 'Ginny'.

From the moment Ginevra had entered the meeting room, she was throwing glares and unimpressed glances at him. Tom had seen Luna, Ron, Remus and Draco wincing when she glared at him.

Just what was her problem?

The Dark Lord simply ignored the whole ordeal.

Suddenly, Harry's eyes glazed over. It was only for a moment, but the Dark Lord's eyes blazed with anger. His magic swirled around the room angrily, breaking things.

"That fucking old coot!" The Dark Lord hissed furiously.

"What is it?" Tom asked, alarmed.

The man did not answer, however the room darkened, and the room became colder. Black smoke started forming behind the Dark Lord.

'Oh Merlin.'

The hair on the back of his neck stood.

The Dark smoke became denser and denser, until it took a vaguely humanoid form. The figure was wearing billowing black robes which seemed neverending. Tom could not discern where the robes ended and the darkness started.

He saw every face, except Harry's, pale at the arrival of Death. He knew this wasn't the first time they had seen Death. Harry had said that the entity attended at least one meeting every month.

But to see them for the first time.

Tom wished he had taken Harry's offer to meet Death earlier. He did not want to make a fool of himself in front of the Dark Lord's Knights. But this was Death.

Merlin, how much he feared them.

The concept of death was frightening enough, but to stand in their presence?
Tom wanted to bolt out of the room and never come back.

Death glided closer to the Dark Lord and said something in his ears. The man nodded but the rage in his eyes remained.

Though Tom did not see their eyes, he felt that Death was staring at him as they spoke.
《Dumbledore's plan, what exactly it is, I do not know. But I have heard one thing. It involves you, Tom Riddle.》

With that, they dissolved into thin air.

Tom sat petrified on his seat even after the presence was gone from the room.

Of course Dumbledore wouldn't leave him alone! The man hates his very existence.

"You will protect him with your life, if it comes down to it." He heard Harry say.

"What information do you have on Hades, my child?" Albus smiled a benign smile.

"The next attack will be at Little Whining. That's all I know." The red-headed young woman said, throwing glances here and there, every few second.

Such a paranoid girl.

Albus smiled kindly at her.

The girl had joined Lord Hades because she wanted to rebel against her parents who were firmly against dark wizards, though after the attacks, she had second thoughts. She only wished that nobody, except Albus, ever got to know that it was her who betrayed the Dark Lord.

If her Lord got to know.... she shuddered, just thinking about it. If he did, she dearly wished that her Lord would just kill her. It was the most merciful her Lord could be.

Albus left the girl and made his way back to his house.

He had some magical signature to collect.

Chapter Text

"Maybe Tom should not attend Hogwarts this year. He already has finished his OWLS. There's no need to go near that old man."

《 Though  the  idea has merit, you know that Tom  wouldn't  like that.  He's  likes his independence.》

"His life is in danger."

《 It does not matter. Maybe in the past, he  would've  listened to that  idea . But now he has  friends , Harry. Would  you've  left all  your  friends or even Remus  and  Sirius near Dumbledore?》

Harry sighed, knowing Death had a point. Family was something both he and Tom cherished the most.

《 Harry, you yourself are also going to be there. If something happens, you would know immediately. 》

Yes, he would. But Harry still could not shake the feeling that something bad was going to happen in the coming months. Something bad to Tom.

Death, even they couldn't tell exactly what Dumbledore was planning. 'I can't read minds, Harry.'

He felt a hand on his shoulder and exhaled.

Death's presence felt cold and dangerous to everyone else, but to him, after so many months, felt comfortable.

They were sarcastic and loved destruction, but somewhere in their dead heart, no pun intended, Death cared for Harry.

Death's first human companion.

《 It will be alright.》

"I hope so."

Harry clutched the locket which hung around his neck.

It was a gift given by Tom on his birthday, a few days back.

Only his and Tom's close friends had attended the party.

He looked at the locket and smiled.

A snake wrapped around a lion.

How ironic.

Two weeks before the start of the term, Tom was hanging out with his friends at Graham's house.

His parents had some gathering to attend, so they had the whole manor to themselves.

"It's really sad that you won't be able to spend more time with us at Hogwarts." Theo said to Graham and Adrian.

"True. But we can not exactly do something about it." Adrian said.

"Yeah, we know. But it still sucks." Astoria said.

"This year we are adding more people to the court, right?" Daphne asked.

"Of course we are. The house needs to be under control after we leave too." Tom said.

"Have you heard the news about Dumbledore?" Adrian asked.

After getting a negative response, the boy rolled his eyes and said, "Rumors are that the man is working on eliminating Lord Hades."

Daphne snorted and said, "Eliminate Lord Hades. What is the man thinking?"

"Why do you say so, Daph?" Graham asked, taking a longer sip of butterbeer from his glass.

"That the man is insane. Lord Hades is too good to be killed by Dumbledore. It will be the Dark Lord who will destroy the old man."

"You think so too?" Adrian smirked.

Tom tried to keep the smile off his face. He was just so proud of Harry. And his friends clearly liked Harry (as the Dark Lord) too. This would make it easy when he tells them the truth.

"You know, I have a thought." Adrian said suddenly. "I think that there is some sort of connection between Lord Peverell and Lord Hades."

Everyone looked startled by the sentence. After a moment, Theo and Astoria looked like they didn't care less, Graham looked curious and Daphne nodded seriously.

"Why do you think so?" Tom asked, looking curious on the outside. Internally, he was panicking.

Adrian stared at him, like he was contemplating whether to trust him or not. They knew about his habit of telling almost everything that he knew to Harry.

"I swear, Adrian, that I won't judge or tell Harry about what you think." He said, rolling his eyes. He would tell Harry about how close some of his friends are to the truth. If a bunch of school kids realize that there's something fishy, the world would make that out soon. 

Yes, he wanted to tell them the truth one day, but not now. Not before asking Harry.
(It was Harry's secret. Tom did not have the right to tell it to anyone without his permission.)

"Alright. See it like this, the people who Lord Hades kills and marks them as his main target are always high ranking ministry members. People who hold influence. The exact people who would oppose the bills proposed by Hadrian just weeks after their deaths. McNair and Umbridge. The Magical Beings Protection Act. Matthews and Yaxley. The Magical Child Protection Act. White and Kane. Legalizing blood magic."

Adrian looked at everyone in the eye before continuing.
"Politically active people think that Hadrian is just taking advantage of the situation. But I beg to differ. Why is it that every person who is killed would've surely opposed the bills? Why is that the people who have taken their place worship the ground Lord Peverell walks on? Why has Lord Hades started his attacks just months after Hadrian came to Britain?"

"Why do the Dark Lord's ideals seem to be similar to Lord Peverell's ideals?"
Adrian finished and stared at Tom.

There wasn't any accusation in the eyes. Just a pure want to know what's happening.

Tom froze. He could not blurt out the truth. He did not want to. But he had to say something.

He knew that if he remained quiet, they would know that Harry has something to do with Lord Hades.

Before he could open his mouth, Astoria laughed and said, "I think that you're thinking too much about this, Adrian. Maybe what the people are saying is true. Maybe Hadrian is just taking advantage of the situation. Just let that political brain of yours rest."

Everyone laughed and the tension in the room broke. Everything went back to normal.

Though Tom still felt Adrian's questioning eyes on him sometimes.

It was nearing eight when Tom stood up and said, "I have to go back, guys. Harry and I are going out. Goodbye."

He smiled at them and went out of the room towards the floo room.

As he neared the door, he heard Astoria exclaim, "I'll be back in a moment!"

He slowed down his walk and waited for her.

"Peverell!" Astoria called out.

Tom rolled his eyes and turned around. "Do you not get tired of teasing me?"

"Never." She laughed and walked along with him. "So where are you going tonight, Mr. Peverell?"

He flushed slightly at the name but answered, "Italy."

Astoria whistled and said, "Wow. Do you always go international?"

"No. Sometimes we stay at home."

As he took the floo powder in his hands, Astoria said, "I saved you today, Tom. But one day you have to tell us the truth."

"What do you mean?" He asked her nonchalantly.

Looking at him pointedly, she said, "You know what I mean, Tom. I'm not stupid. I know that there is some connection between Hadrian and the Dark Lord. I also know that Hadrian isn't stupid enough to let anyone go around and blurt out his secrets. Surely you are under some sort of secrecy spell. And you know what, unless his secret hurts my family, which includes you, I don't care. Whatever happens, I stand with you. You're my best friend, Tom."

With that, she smiled and pushed him into the floo. He only had a second to yell, "Peverell Manor", before he vanished.

When he reached his home, he laughed happily.

He had a best friend.

"What did you do, Tori?" Daphne asked when she entered the room.

"I pushed him into the floo." She said with a satisfied smile.

Theo laughed uncontrollably at that.
"You know, if I didn't love your sister so much, I would've wanted to kiss you, Astoria."

Daphne and the rest of them looked at Theo with wide eyes.

When he realized that he said that out loud, Theo stopped laughing and looked at Daphne, before running out of the room.

"What do you say, Daph?" Astoria asked.

"What!?" The blond girl replied, her voice shriller than usual.

"Do you like him back or not?"

For the first time in life, Daphne threw a pillow in her sister's face.

In front of people who were not their parents, of course.

Chapter Text

Tom was sharing his compartment with Astoria, Theo and Daphne on his way to Hogwarts. The group felt strangely incomplete without Graham and Adrian. And the school year hadn't even started.

As they were eating some pumpkin pasties they'd bought from the trolley lady (which had felt like a luxury to him in the past)  Daphne spoke, "So when and how are we going to approach Crouch, Tom? None of us share any class with him."

"How about now?" Tom replied, stretching his legs on the seat.

Astoria jumped off her seat and went out of the compartment yelling 'I'll do it'.

The three of them rolled their eyes at her antics. Sometimes, Tom wondered how Daphne and Astoria were related. The elder sister was like ice whereas the younger one like roaring fire.

A few minutes later, the door of the compartment opened once again and Astoria entered with the fourth year Ravenclaw.

"You want to talk with me?" The boy asked cautiously.

According to Theo, the boy was very smart and also, the black sheep of his family. Which meant that the boy was a dark wizard.

Bartemius Crouch Sr, his father, was a staunch light wizard and hated anything even remotely related to dark magic. The man loved his work more than anything else to the point where even his family did not matter to him.

Crouch Sr. also respected Dumbledore a lot and hated the fact that his own son was a dark wizard. The only reason the boy wasn't disowned was because of his mother's interference. The woman loved her son no matter what.

Some even said that the boy would've been killed if it wasn't for his mother. This proved just how much Dumbledore affected the society. His followers were ready to kill their own children just because they were born with a natural affinity to dark magic.

"We have an offer for you." Tom said.

After the Welcoming feast was over, Tom, who was selected as the Headboy, ordered the prefects to lead the first years to the common room.

"You really like ordering people around, don't you?" Theo asked with a grin.

"Of course I do."

This was the first time he was the one who was going to give the introduction speech to the first year. Something which he was supposed to do for the last two years. It was his right.

When he reached the dungeons, he gave the usual 'welcome to Slytherin' speech as the previous prefects did.

After Snape did his part and left with a last glare targeted at Tom, the Slytherin Prince once again started speaking.

"First years, some of you might know this already and the others won't, but the Slytherin House has its own hierarchy. Unlike the rest of the houses, we operate in a different manner. This house has a group of people who set a couple of rules for the house to folow. The Slytherin Court. These students with the most say in the matters of the house, even more than Snape himself. Listen tous and you would be respected, maybe favored too. But if you harm us, not even your family status can save you, remember that."

Most of the first year pureblood students looked offended at that. They were taught from a very young age how powerful their family name is. And here, a seventeen year old boy was challenging the name of their centuries old house.

But 'Think before you speak' had also been hammered in their heads for a long time. So, they turned their heads slightly to look at the older members of the house.

To their immense surprise, most of them had their heads bowed (A Malfoy too!), whereas some were looking at the brown haired boy with reverence.

So wisely they kept their mouths shut and nodded.

Tom was satisfied by the response and continued.

"Let me introduce myself. I'm Tom Marvolo Riddle, Lord Slytherin." Many first years gasped at that. "And I'm the Prince of the Slytherin House currently and the HeadBoy of Hogwarts too. If I tell you to do something, it is expected that you follow it through. At present, the members of my court are Theodore Nott, Astoria Greengrass and Daphne Greengrass. Outside Hogwarts we have two more members. Adrian Pucey and Graham Montague. If I find you worthy, you may find a place for yourself in my Court. There are a few rules which are to be followed at any cost."

"One, no one will use the word 'Mudblood'. If I hear a single word that you've used it, the consequences will not be pretty. The second rule is that you will not bully anyone outside this dorm. Gryffindors included. Third rule, if someone bullies you, pay back, but subtly. If you can't do it alone, ask for any Slytherins help. Four, your performance in the classes should be good. No laziness will be tolerated in this House. I want to bring back my House name back to its former glory, which it belongs to. I won't have any one of you destroying my chances because of your prejudices. Goodnight."

With that, he spun on his heels and went to his room, his robes flowing dramatically. The Court members followed him silently, glaring at everyone.

Once inside his room, Astoria yelled and gave him a hug. "Tom, that was great!"

The next day, Tom raced to the Great Hall, already late for breakfast. Damn Harry for distracting him with that smile and mouth of his!

When he finally reached the table, Theo whistled at his ruffled state and said, "Somebody was busy."

"Pleasantly." He replied, glaring silently at the perfect, 'not a single hair out of place' figure of Harry, who looked like he was sitting on the table for a long time, instead of just a few minutes ago.

His next six weeks went in a similar fashion.

On the first of October, they had approached the rest of the candidates for court. Almost each one of them looked ready to join on the same day, though they'd given them a week's time.

The four of them were sure that they'll have new court members in a week's time.

Tom only hoped that they'll have the same relationship Harry had with his Knights.

Chapter Text

Barty, Evan and Tracey accepted their offer easily. Barty did not care about the muggleborns and purebloods much, Tracey herself was a halfblood and Evan actually liked Tom (platonically).

Barty, despite being a Ravenclaw, had many Slytherin tendencies, but was still a raven at heart. He had a sort of hero worship for Harry. When the first time they met, Barty stuttered for fifteen minutes straight. Thankfully, Harry seemed to be used to it and didn't mind it. Towards the end when they had to leave, he had relaxed enough.

And Tom was correct.

Harry held some fondness for Ravenclaws.
Out of all his friends, Harry liked Barty the most, followed by Graham and Adrian, and now Orion.

Evan was the shy kid of their group. The fourth year was selected because of his exceptional abilities in potions. According to his classmates, even Snape was fond of Evan. (Not that it made him any less harsh towards Tom)
Druella always glared at her younger brother whenever he was seen sitting with them, not that she could do anything about it. After the first time she had tried to attack Evan the day he was introduced as a court member, Tom ordered her as the Slytherin Prince to never talk, attack or insult any member of the court. They had put a spell on her which made her physically unable to come near them.

Tracey reminded him of Hermione in some ways. Her mother was a muggleborn and Tracey had spend a lot of time in the muggle world. In spite of being magical, her muggle grandparents loved her and her mother a lot. Plus, she knew a lot about the muggle world. Their science, politics, history and all.

The Lestrange twins, Orion and Blaise, had hesitated a bit before joining them.

Their parents were pureblood supremacists and did not like the idea of their heirs associating with a halfblood. Still, after seeing the relationship between the Court members, they let themselves do whatever they wanted to do without their parents' influence on them for once.

The day after they had accepted his offer, each one of them had received a letter from their parents, which were promptly burned.

"We're the heir of our houses. They can't disown us. As for Rabastan, well, Rudolphus is his twin. Lord Lestrange can't disown him without Rudo doing something against them." Orion said.

Orion was the Sirius Black of their group. The prankster along with the Lestrange twins. Also, Padfoot was his idol.
"Uncle Sirius is so cool. And we even share a common name!"
Apparently, Sirius and Orion's father, Lord Arcturus Black were cousins. Sirius' mother and Arcturus' father were siblings. Walburga married the previous Lord Noir. The House of Noir was a side branch of the Black family, so they still used Black as their surnames. There were too many people from the that family line who lived in France, so they named themselves as the Noir family.
(It took a long time for Tom to understand the exact relation between the Blacks. He never wanted to hear Orion's family speech again. He understood why Sirius did not like to speak about it.)

The Lestrange twins were eerily similar to the Weasley twins. Loved pranking people. Good at Arithmancy and Ancient Runes. Made new things during their free time.
Rudolphus was more short tempered than Rabastan. The older twin (just by 13 minutes!) was going to be engaged to Druella Rosier. Luckily, after almost making her the outcast of the House, Lord Lestrange started having second thoughts about the girl, so he declined the marriage offer.

Blaise was like his mother, a silent killer. From a young age, his mother taught him the 'fine art of being an assassin'. Even Harry was impressed by the knowledge of weapons the boy had. He was also the flirt of the group. He had flirted with almost every person in Hogwarts.
"It isn't flirting, Tom. It's information gathering. I speak sweetly, and they tell me their darkest secret without thinking twice. It's an art."

Everything was going perfectly fine until the day of Halloween.

Aurors apparated outside the wards erected by the Reapers covering Little Hangleton.

Like always, no magical activity was seen from outside.

This was something Lord Hades did. The wards erected by him did not allow anyone from outside to know who was exactly attacking the place. It confused the magical people outside whether it was a raid by the Dark Lord or a muggle attack.

As usual, it took nearly twenty minutes to take down the wards.

As they went inside, the best aurors tried to stop the Reapers while the lower ranked ones evacuated the place.

Soon, probably after being bored, the attackers left.

This made them more dangerous. They did not gloat and laugh. Simply killed and left. It made it hard to even guess the people behind the masks.

Even after over fifty raids, the Aurors could not catch one of them or even guess their identity.

Soon after the Reapers left, they did their usual jobs of trying to find a magical signature or something that could help them find those criminals. Though, it was always futile. They never found one. Those Reapers were too good.

Alastor almost cursed the bumbling reporter who was trying to get inside the crime scene when he heard an auror exclaim, "Sir! SIR!"

Alastor went towards Kingsley Shacklebolt, one of their best aurors and asked, "What is it, Kingsley?"

"We found one."

Finally.

The feeling of victory could never get old.

Albus had always been a good actor.

It was something that he inherited from his father, Percival Dumbledore.

When the Aurors, along with Fudge, asked him for the permission to enter Hogwarts at 2 am, he acted thoroughly surprised.

"How can I help you, Cornelius?"

"We have some very bad news, Albus. Really bad. Dangerous stuff." The man started muttering.

Albus hid his irritation for the bumbling man and turned towards Alastor.

Alastor Moody was a perfect pawn. His hatred for dark wizards could rival his own. Was reckless and paranoid. Did not care about others judgement about him. Albus himself had helped in making the boy hate dark wizards.

Moody made him feel like a proud parent sometimes.

"We're here to arrest a criminal, Dumbledore." Moody said with his usual gruff voice.

"A criminal here? At Hogwarts? You should be mistaken, dear boy. No one could enter these wards without my or the Headmaster's permission." He said kindly.

"No one can enter the wards, Dumbledore. Enter. But if the person already has the permission, they can enter Hogwarts after exiting it, if I'm not wrong?"

"Yes, you are correct. But what do you mean by exiting...." He trailed off, acting confused.

"It's a student, Albus. The criminal is a student." Fudge said.

Albus took a sharp breath and shook his head in denial. "No! This can't be true. These are children, Cornelius. They aren't killers."

Moody sighed and said, "Tom Riddle. We're here to arrest him."

"Wha- That can't be true." He said, though allowed the doubt to bleed through his voice.

"See. You yourself are doubtful. What's it about, Albus?" Moody asked.

"Tom Riddle." He said, acting like it pained him. "I always knew there was something really different about the boy since I met him. Last year, I'd even tried to warn Hadrian about it. But the poor boy insisted that Tom could be changed. Went on about his idealism about equality of magic. As much as I was against it, I had hoped that maybe, maybe what Hadrian was saying was true. But now...." He shook his head sadly.

"You knew that the Riddle boy is a dark wizard!?" Moody asked angrily.

Kingsley tried to calm him down when Albus said, "I did. At first, it was an institution. But then the newspapers came. Slytherin's Heir. A Parselmouth. What more proof do you need?"

"Why didn't you tell us about this before?" Moody yelled.

"And you would arrest him with what proof? That he could talk to snakes. And he's just a child, Alastpr." Albus said with sadness shining in his eyes.

"Not a child anymore, is he? He's a murderer. Killed half a village in cold blood today. And soon to be a prisoner too. Enough of this chit chat, Albus. We need to do our job." Moody said. 

"Should I inform Hadrian about this?" Albus asked.

"No need! The poor boy will be heartbroken. First his parents were betrayed by their friend, and now he was betrayed by his lover. The poor boy! Also we don't have enough time. Tom Riddle can manipulate him or use some sort of dark magic on him to escape. This is the first Reaper we have caught! We can't take any chances. Hadrian can be present during the trial tomorrow." Fudge said.

Albus had to contain his smirk.

He did not even have to try! The boy would be taken away without Peverell trying to interfere. By tomorrow, he could easily convince them to imprison Riddle without the use of Veritaserum. Or better, they could even oder the Dementors to kiss him tomorrow! Great riddance.

Peverell would only be a hindrance. Justice to dark wizards and all that.

"Please take us to Riddle, Albus."  Kingsley said.

Internally delighted, he led them towards the dungeons.

Tom was sleeping peacefully on his bed inside his dorm room, when someone knocked the on his door continuously.

He had just gotten up in a sitting position when the doors were blasted open.

He immediately took his wand from the side table and pointed it towards the intruders.

"Tom Riddle! You're under arrest!" Someone yelled.

He could only see the silhouette of many people before spells were thrown his way, startling him. His wand flew away from his hands and ropes bounded him before he could comprehend what was happening. He felt some kind of magic restraining device put upon him before he could see the intruder's face clearly.

A heavily scarred man came in front of him and smacked him in his face.

"You dirty scum! Let's see how good you can kill when you're inside Azkaban."

Tom remained frozen. Just what was happening!?

Then, he saw the smirking face of Albus Dumbledore and knew that he was doomed.

He remained quiet as the aurors manhandled him outside his dorm, to the Slytherin Common Room.

It seemed that the blasting of his door had woken up his fellow Slytherins. All of them were gathered in the Common Room and were huddled together in groups, murmuring to each other.

He saw the furious and confused faces of his court as they saw him bound and being escorted out of the room.

"WHAT THE HELL ARE YOU DOING!?" Astoria screamed.

"SHUT UP, GIRL! IF YOU TRY TO DEFEND THIS REAPER HERE YOU'LL BE PUT IN AZKABAN TOO!" Moody bellowed.

Tom saw every face in the common room pale. The Slytherin Prince was a Reaper?

He saw the shocked faces of his friends. He wanted to explain himself to them.

"What about Lord Peverell?" Someone whispered.

"Peverell might not even know. You Slytherin aren't known to be the most truthful ones now, are you?" One of the aurors said.

Every Slytherin bristled at the accusation but wisely remained quiet.

"Students, please return back to your own rooms." Dumbledore said.

Nobody moved.

Tom started thinking furiously. What will Harry do? He might not even know till tomorrow morning what happened here tonight.

What will he do once he comes to know that Tom is arrested? Storm inside the Ministry and reveal that he's the Dark Lord? Stand behind quietly?

He hoped that Harry did not do something reckless like the first option.

As the Head Auror, Moody, forced him towards the entrance door, he saw a green tail under one of the couches.

Nagini.

Harry had smuggled her inside Hogwarts at the start of the term.

Taking a deep breath, he spoke, staring at the snake portrait, "Nagini, don't come out. Tell Harry not to do something reckless. This was Dumbledore's plan. Tell him not to do anything which will reveal his identity. Please. And that I love him."

It was the last thing he said as a red light hit him, making him unconscious.

Every person inside the Slytherin Common Room gasped when they heard Tom speak Parseltongue.

After getting over his startled state, Moody stunned the boy.

He looked at the rest of the Slytherins and spat, "Try to do any kind of dark magic and you and your family will be the next."

He then ordered the aurors to drag the unconscious body of Tom Riddle outside the common room.

They will make the boy pay for every person the Reapers had killed before the trial.

When they reached the holding cells inside the Ministry, he said to the junior Aurors, "Just make sure that his face looks fine before the trial."

Nagini watched furiously as the red clothed people took her hatchling out of the room.

They will pay.

She wanted to go and bite each one of them. But she was only a snake and alone. There were five red clothes, a portly man and Dumbly. She would not win.

She slithered out from the room and made her way towards Tommy's mate. As much as he irritated her by constantly touching her hatchling, he was the only one who could bring back Tommy safely.

Chapter Text

Tom felt numb as he laid on the floor of holding cells inside the Ministry.

How was it even possible that these people thought of themselves as good people? Tom could hear the crunching of his bones when he moved even a little bit.

They might not use any dark spell, but the ones they used weren't any less harmful. How could the aurors do something like this to someone who wasn't even trailed yet? And maybe also consider the fact that he was a minor.

After some hours, he heard someone come inside the cell.

"It's a pity that we have to heal you. Stand up, now! We don't have the whole day."

He was hauled up on his feet by the person and healed. He winced when the person clutched his shoulders too tightly and heard a crunching sound again. "Ow."

'Don't speak." The person commanded.

He felt the cool sensation of the healing spells wash over him and stopped himself from sighing. Merlin knows these people would hurt him more if they knew he felt better.

After the process was completed, they changed his clothes to the prisoners' robes and dragged him outside.

Three more Aurors were present there. They shackled him and pulled him towards the elevators, ignoring his wincing.

When they reached the trail room, Tom tensed when an icy feeling washed over him.

Dementors.

He cursed. How could he be so stupid to not know that the dementors would be present during his trial. After all, he was the supposed first Reaper they had caught.

The doors of the trial room opened and he was dragged inside.

The first thing he saw was the metal chair with magic restraining chains in the centre of the room. It was inside a cage.

He was then pushed inside the cage.

There was very little space in it so he was then pushed onto the chair and the shackles wrapped even more around him. They were so tight that Tom feared they'd cut-off the blood circulation of his hands.

Tom then looked around the room. There were over a hundred people inside. Aurors, Lords and Ladys of many different houses, department Heads, reporters and many high ranking Ministry members.

He then saw the stone-faced Harry.

The man was looking at him without any expression on his face, though his eyes roamed over Tom's face and body, stopping exactly where his bruises ached the most under the prisoners' robes.

When their eyes met, Harry shook his head slightly.

Oh.

Fifteen minutes later, Dumbledore came inside the room along with Fudge and Moody.

After taking his place, the Minister banged the gavel and spoke, "Today, we're here for the judgment over the crimes done by Tom Marvolo Riddle. He's accused of murder, torture, being a part of a terrorist group, for using dark magic and the Unforgivable Curses. Chief Warlock Dumbledore, please start with the proofs against the accused."

Dumbledore stood up from his face and walked to the center of the trail room, his face all sad and concerned.

"Thank you, Minister. So, yesterday night at Little Whining, Head Auror Moody and his group reached the place half-an-hour after the place was attacked by the terrorists group known as Reapers which is led by a person named Lord Hades. After searching for a while, they found a magical signature on the site, which belonged to Tom Riddle. The Unspeakables have approved of it." 

A Unspeakable stepped forward and handed over some papers to Minister Fudge.

"Now normally, this wouldn't have caused any suspicions per say, as magical signatures are always left behind when a person uses their magic. But until yesterday, at every place which has been attacked by the Reapers, no such signature has ever been found. It seems highly suspicious that Tom Riddle's magical signature was found at Little Whining, when he is supposed to be at Hogwarts."

"We have all heard rumors about the numerous passages which can lead a person out of Hogwarts without the need of anyone's permission. Maybe Tom Riddle found one of such passages. Afetrall, he is Lord Slytherin. As for the use of dark magic, it would not be much difficult for Tom to practice that kind of magic, with him being a dark wizard." The man said with evident disgust in his voice.

Many dark families glared at Dumbledore for that, but remained quiet.

Dumbledore then went on to explain about him being a dark wizard since he was a parselmouth.

Most of the people seemed to have already decided to put him in Azkaban after Dumbledore stopped talking.

Tom shuddered when one of the Dementors came too close to him.

Fudge then once again banged his gavel and started to speak, "Since it has been already proved that Tom Riddle is indeed— "

"Minister. Shouldn't we atleast administer Veritaserum and ask Tom about his side of the story?" Harry interrupted.

The whole room went silent at that. Many of them were wondering about Hadrian Peverell's reaction to his lover being a Reaper.

This wasn't what most of them expected.

Hadrian Peverell still believed that his lover was innocent.

Lord Malfoy suddenly laughed harshly and spoke with mock pity, "Oh you poor boy. Do you still think that this boy is as innocent as you believed? As much as it pains me to admit it, Dumbledore is correct. The boy should be put into Azkaban."

Now, Lucius Malfoy did not care about murdering the muggle filth or mudbloods. Actually, he approved of it. But he hated Peverell and his pet.

The Peverell boy was too good for his own good. That muggle-loving fool. Since the boy had accepted his Lordship, he had been a thorn on his side. Always insulting him in the Ministry Balls, stopping his bills and throwing dirt on his name.

Dumbledore smiled sadly at Harry and spoke, "My boy, I know that you really loved Tom, but—"

"Yes." Harry interrupted him.

Tom froze at it. Even after being in a courtship for almost a year, they hadn't said the words to each other yet. Tom did not believe that he would hear the words anytime soon.

Dumbledore smiled tightly and said, "But you need to understand that Tom here is a criminal. He has murdered people. Kidnapped and maybe even tortured little kids. He's no different from the Death Eaters who had killed James and Lily, my boy."

Tom saw the flash of rage in Harry's eyes at the mention of his parents, but the man remained silent.

Fudge then proceeded to announce his punishment, which was life imprisonment in Azkaban.

Tom remained quiet as the Aurors manhandled him out of the trial room.

The last thing he saw was Harry's murderous eyes before the doors of the trial room shut close.

From a distance, a red headed girl observed the boat which had the Head Auror, a group of Aurors and a brown haired teenager on it.

The Prince was going to Azkaban.

Revenge is best served when cold.

Ginny twirled her wand in her hand and smirked manically.

She moved silently, like a shadow, towards the fortress.

The dementors floated above Azkaban. They were going to get a new meal today.

Storming out of the Ministry, Harry apparated to his headquarters.

He wasn't just furious. He wanted to see the floor stained crimson today.

He was murderous.

"Did you hear that?" Marissa asked the group as soon she entered the auror department.

A black haired Auror looked up and asked, "Heard what?"

"They caught a Reaper. The British Aurors."

Ron froze when he heard those words.

What?

"They are taking the prisoner to Azkaban." Marissa continued.

How? It couldn't be possible. They had taken every precaution necessary.

"What's their name?" He asked.

"Tom Riddle."

Oh no.

Merlin. They had signed their death warrant.

He only hoped Harry hadn't killed them in open daylight.

This was Dumbledore's move.

Ron wanted to crucio the person who had helped the old coot.

Chapter Text

When they stepped out of the boat, Tom felt the icy feeling settle deep in his bones. The dementors were making him feel sad and hopeless. Will he ever get out of this place? Or will he rot here one day, with the last wish to feel the heat of a warm sunny day once again?

Will Harry forget about him, finding someone better, more worthy?

He remembered feeling the dejection he felt when Harry signaled with the shake of his head that Tom couldn't be saved. Not without risking his identity. But that was what he wanted.

Tom straightened himself. No, he would not rot here. He would not lose himself in this miserable place.

Moody dragged him towards the prison by the chain of the shacks around his wrists, ankles and neck.

The Auror hadn't been kind to him since they left the Ministry building. The man and his group beat, insulted and taunted him. They tortured him until he lost his consciousness. "A precautionary measure", they'd said when they beat him black and blue.

Tom vowed to torture each one of them if he ever got out of this hellhole.

They were just near the entrance of the fortress when Moody stopped suddenly.

Before they could turn behind, a gunshot was heard.

One of the Aurors fell down with the bullet in his chest and started to writhe in pain.

Two more gunshots were heard and only the three aurors and Tom were left standing.

"WHO'S THERE!? COME OUT, YOU COWARD!" Moody yelled angrily.

A woman's laugh was heard from the entry gate of Azkaban. The four people turned behind to look at the person.

A very familiar figure was standing at the gates.

Ginny Weasley.

The woman was wearing the typical Reaper uniform sans the mask.

Tom did not know whether to feel relieved or to panic.

"Oh Moody, look we meet each other again." The girl said sweetly. Her words sounded like poison.

"Weasley. I knew what you were since the day I met you. And wasn't I correct? I see Hades made you his whore. But you are still useless as a lady, aren't you?" The man taunted with a smirk on his face. (Which unsettled Tom)

Ginny's face was calm, but her words were filled with the promise of pain. "You'll pay for it."

They did not speak a word anymore and started duelling.

The remaining two aurors joined the fight whereas Tom wisely took cover.

The two aurors were killed minutes within the fight. Moody and Ginny kept fighting each other for a long time. By the end of it, both of them were heavily bleeding and tired.

Tom hated to admit it but Moody was a good dueler. But it would be better if he was dead. What surprised him was that the Head Auror did not hesitate to use dark magic. Talk about hypocrisy.

Their duel ended with Ginny cutting off both of Moody's arms and bounding him.

The woman stood in front of Moody as he snarled at her.
"Don't think I'm done with you." With that, she put a small disc on his neck, which Tom knew Harry used to keep the prisoners in the dungeons with their magic bound, and the man vanished.

She then waved her wand in a complicated movement, which Tom realized as the magical signature removing spell. After completing the spell, she brought out a parchment from her coat. One of the aurors was lifted in air and stuck on the wall of the fortress. The symbol of the deathly hallows was burned on the wall above his head and the parchment was stuck on his chest, exactly where the bullet had struck him.

Ginny remained staring at the spot for some minutes before laughing uncontrollably. It was a surprisingly joyful but still slightly hysterical laugh.

Nevertheless, when she stopped laughing, she came towards the boulder which Tom was using as a cover.

Tom moved from his place but still remained a bit far from Ginny.

The woman stopped a few feets in front of him and said, "Well, my Prince, let's get you out of here."

Tom nodded and followed her.

They walked for a few minutes away from the fortress after which Ginny floated them over the water.

Though they did not speak a word to one another, Tom wondered why Ginevra saved him. Did Harry order her to do it, or she volunteered herself ?

His musings were cut short when they landed on the ground.

"Why did you save me?"

"Why not?"

"I thought you hated me." He pointed out and almost smacked himself. His life depended on the person he was talking with.

"I dislike you, Tom Riddle. Not hate you. Let's go to the Headquarters now."

She took his arm and apparated away

When they went inside the manor, Tom realized that every Knight was present there. Their faces were etched with worry.

As soon as they realized that both Tom and Ginny were there, both pale and exhausted, Draco and Luna immediately rushed to the Infirmary.

As he was getting tended to, Tom heard the conversation between Ginny and her siblings.

"You have caught him?" Fred asked in disbelief.

"Yes. Finally, after waiting for thirteem years, I'll get my revenge." Ginny said, smirking madly. Yet, there was some sort of complicated emotion in her voice.

"We're so proud of you, Ginny." Ron said, smiling at his younger sister.

Ginny made to get up from her bed but Ron stopped her. "What?" She asked, confused.

Shaking his head, George said, "Harry's down there. And he's pissed. Worse than he was with Pettigrew."

Ginny gasped lightly and whispered, "Oh." Looking concerned, she asked, "Is he.... stable?"

"Maybe. We're not sure. We were hoping that our little Prince here might be able to help him." Fred said, looking at Tom.

"Uh. Okay?" Tom replied.

Luna gave him an understanding smile and said, "Why don't you tell us how you got to know about Tom being sent to Azkaban, Gin?"

"Yes." Sitting upright on the bed, she started speaking, "I saw a suspicious shadow yesterday during the attack. Unfortunately, I was injured badly because of the muggle policeman who shot me, so I could not follow them. Only seconds before apparating away, I realized it was Dumbledore. I wanted to follow him, but I lost consciousness immediately after coming back, as you know. The next morning, I immediately went near Hogwarts to look out for Dumbledore, and saw the man going somewhere. I followed his magical signature and found myself near the Ministry."

"Ten minutes before his trial was going to start, I saw Harry. At that moment, he was contemplating simply attacking the Ministry. But me being there changed his plans. He could not leave the building before the aurors returned after throwing Riddle in Azkaban. We came up with a plan, which involved me going to save him. It was a bonus with Moody being there. That's why the dementors left us alone the whole time."

"What was the parchment you left behind?" Tom asked.

"You'll see." The redheaded woman smirked.

He remained silent but was still curious about the whole Moody thing. Why did the Weasleys hate him so much?

Later, when he asked about it, Fred was the one to tell him, "Ginny, unlike the rest of us, the Weasleys, was born as a dark witch. Though our parents did not care about it, they kept it a secret. At that time, we were living in Britain. Prejudices against dark beings were common. Unfortunately our parents were members of Dumbledore's Order of Phoenix, so the other members visited our home a lot. It was Moody who got to know about Ginny being a dark witch."

George continued, "And he wasn't happy. Man, he was furious. He tried to kill her first and did not care that she was just a fucking five year old kid. Our parents and some other members of the Order interfered, but the man did not listen. He even tried to tell our parents to abandon her. The final straw was when he casted a Infertility Curse on her."

"Our parents and the Order members who supported us tried to take legal actions, but Dumbledore intervened. They got to know about Dumbledore's true colors, and used all their money to move out of Britain. This place seemed to be lucky for us, as our father got a better job and earned more. Since then, we all wanted revenge from Moody."

"Ginny was the most affected. She absolutely adores children. Always wanted a little clan of here own. At that time, she was too young to understand what Moody had cursed her with. But as she grew up, mom and dad had to tell her about it. It was not a good day. Months, honestly. Not being able to have children of her own because of a madman made her sad and angry. She had encountered him before. He always taunted her about 'not being a proper lady'. It took years for her to understand that not being able to give birth did not make her any less of a lady. But she vowed to take revenge. The day she caught him was probably one of her best days of her life. The man was hard to catch  during raids."

After he was healed completely, Tom made his way towards the dungeons.

He did not know what to feel. The trip to that cursed fortress still left him feeling a bit unsettled.

At least he did not have to actually go inside Azkaban.

As he reached the dungeons, he heard the sound of dripping of something liquid under his shoes.

Looking down, he took a sharp breath and his eyes went wide.

The whole floor was covered in blood.

Chapter Text

Tom took a deep breath, which he immediately regretted. The metallic stench of blood filled his nose and he felt ill.

What the hell was Harry doing?

Using a refreshing charm, he moved forward.

The whole floor was covered in blood. No matter how far he went, Harry's absence and the blood remained. It almost reached his ankles now.

After walking for over five minutes, he came across Nagini and Serene. Both the snakes were feasting on a corpse.

Swallowing his disgust, Tom approached them.

"TOMMY!" 
"Master's mate!"

Both the snakes exclaimed when they saw him.

Nagini wrapped herself around him (which made Tom grimace. She had blood all over her) and started hissing, "Tommy, hatchling! Are you alright!? Did the red coats hurt you? I will bite them all!"

"Nag, let him breathe." Serene said.

"I'm alright, Nagini. Yes, the aurors hurt me a bit, but Harry's friend helped me."

"That's good. Now go and help my Master."  Serene demanded. Why are snakes so demanding?

"What do you mean 'help him'?"  He asked instead.

"Tommy, your mate needs help, or else he'll go mad!" For the first time since she met Harry, Nagini said Harry's name (or what she always calls him) without any venom behind it. Seems like she got over the whole 'protective mother' thing.

"Yes, human. His eyes are clouded with insanity."

It filled him with dread. This was the second time Tom had heard this.

'Is he.... stable?'

'His eyes are clouded with insanity.'

"Alright." He said, and then left the two serpents behind and followed the directions they had given him.

After walking for nearly fifteen-bloody-minutes, literally, he heard some whimpers.

He followed the voice.

Soon he saw many bloody body parts, which looked freshly.... yeah. (He felt nauseous)

Tom continued his path and stopped suddenly.

Just ten steps ahead of him laid the mutilated body of Albus Dumbledore.

"Wha-?"

He heard a scream and turned his head towards a closed door.

Then his eyes fell on the other corpses.

Moody, the five aurors who had taken him to Azkaban, Umbridge, a stern looking woman, Mrs. Coles, Snape, some teen-aged children, a rat-like man and five more Dumbledores.

Oh.

He then noticed the bubbling potion beside a closed door.

Polyjuice Potion.

He wondered who these people really were. He took the satisfaction of seeing the various heavily mutilated corpses of Dumbledore.

Tom then turned towards the foreboding door.

If this was the scene outside the door, what horrors laid inside? Seeing so much blood and gore already made him sick, what will happen when he goes inside? Embarrass himself by fainting? Puking? Screaming in fear?

No, not at all. Gathering his courage, which was admittedly in a good state at the moment, he opened the door.

And stifled a scream.

Yes, the scene inside was bad. Worse than he had expected.

The room was full of corpses, each part of the person's body separated. There were three hyenas in a corner, which were eating someone's guts. A few snakes were doing the same thing. Cedric bloody Diggory along with a few vampires drinking blood from a tank using a cup, which were used to drink wine. The blood was dripping into it from somewhere from the ceiling, but Tom refused to look closer. And were those eyeballs?

There were a few people who were alive and were crying brokenly.

And Harry.

The man was standing in front of someone. The person was almost dead, his chest cut open. In Harry's hand laid a beating heart. But the man was still crying. Begging.

The whole room was a mess. A bad one. A truly evil one.

At his choking voice, Harry and the others noticed him.

The hyenas and the snakes immediately lunged at him. The vampires, except Cedric, crouched in an attacking position.

Tom shot a stunning spell at the hyena and yelled, "STOP!" At the same time, Harry and Cedric yelled the similar thing.

The animals stopped but did not move away.

"Fenris, Typhon, Nyx, come back." Harry said.

The hyenas growled once more before moving back. They walked towards Harry and nuzzled him affectionately.

Since they were at a safe distance from him, he looked at Harry.

'Oh Merlin.'

He had not known that Serene had meant it literally.

Harry's irises, which were usually bright green or blue, had a sheen of white on them. Insanity and bloodlust was prominent in them.

Harry laughed and crushed the heart in his hand, then threw it away and moved towards Tom. As soon as the man to whom the heart belonged dropped dead on the floor, the hyenas pounched on him and started tearing him apart.

"You're here, my sweet, darling Tom!"

Tom cringed and moved away. He would not touch Harry until the man had bathed for at least two hours.

"Harry, um, are you alright?" He winced at that. From the corner of his eyes, he saw Cedric shake his head.

"Of course I am! Why wouldn't I be? Do you want to join me, mon amour." Harry said, laughing maniacally. He then snapped his fingers.

The sound of the breaking of bones resonated throughout the room. Many bones flew up in the air and took the shape of a bouquet in Harry's hand. 

Merlin, Harry was out of his mind. 

Tom took the bones from his hands and gave him a painful smile. As soon as he turned around, Tom threw them on the flood. It splashed blood on his pants.

While the man was busy laughing at the torment of some poor, Tom turned towards the vampire king.

"Why didn't you stop him?" He hissed at the man.

Cedric leaned back on the armchair and stretched his legs. "It's really hard to stop him when he's in a mood like this."

"Mood!? He's literally insane!" He almost screamed in frustration.

First Azkaban and now this. His day was going really bad.

"He did not start like that. Excessive use of dark magic does that to people. Or maybe he did. He was pretty mad when he came here." Cedric said, taking a sip from the glass in his hands.

The rest of the vampires had calmed down and were now doing the same.

Tom continued to glare at him until the man sighed and kept the bloody glass aside. 

"Well, we're going then. Mostly when Harry's in a mood like this, he calms down after an hour or so. It isn't happening today. You are the only one who can stop him. Hopefully." Cedric said and vanished from the spot.

What. The. Hell?

He was just an eighteen year old boy! And now he had to stop a Dark Lord from going insane!? That too alone. 

Tom stared at the spot where the vampire was a few seconds ago in disbelief and then sighed since there wasn't anything he could do now.

He looked at Harry and remembered the man's words from one of their lessons during the summer.

"Using too much Dark Magic isn't good for our anybody. Even dark mages can't use it without any restraints. When people say that it makes you insane, what they say is true. Using excess dark magic messes with your mind."

"Is it permanent?" Tom asked.

"Yes  and  no. If  you   use  magic like that  for  years without  any  control, you  lose  your  mind . But if you lose control rarely, it's  temporary ."

"How can we undo the temporary damage?"

"Well,  first  of all,  knock out the person. Best stop  them from  using  magic.  After that, let the person rest for some days. Bring  a healer.  Don't let them use dark  magic  for a few days, until the signs of the madness completely vanishes."

Leaning towards Harry, Tom asked, "Signs of madness?"

"Yes. You can't just declare any person as insane due to excessive use of dark Magic. There are some physical changes in them by which you can identify their state. Change of eye color is the most prominent one. The person's eyes mostly change to white or red. Sometimes black too. So it's easy to know."

"Wow." It all sounded so cool.

There wasn't anything cool about the situation.

Right now, Tom was stuck with an insane Dark Lord, three gut-eating hyenas and over twenty poisonous snakes in a room. (Why did the vampires leave? The least they could do was help him.)

How was he supposed to knock out Harry? Even in his deranged state, the man was alert.

A plan was forming in the back of his mind which Tom did not like at all.

Then, even if he managed to get out, how to get past the animals?

He did not think he could kill the hyenas, Harry seemed fond of them.

Well, he had to do something, he could not leave Harry in the state the man was in. He just had to stun the animals faster. It was either that or to become animal fodder.

The snakes would listen to him, at least he hoped so.

He walked towards Harry and said, "Harry, can you please ask.... them to go away?"

"Oh, you mean these lovelies? Aren't they so cool?" The man asked, grinning at him. He then walked towards the three and scratched the biggest one behind its ear.

The hyena leaned into the touch not before glaring at Tom.

As one of the animals was busy, Tom went ahead with his plan.

Discreetly, he aimed his wand at one hyena and his hand at the other.

He planned to do magic using both his wand and hand. Tom hoped that he would be fast to stun the third one before she ate him.

"Stupefy."

The next moment, he realized his plan had one major flaw.

Chapter Text

"Stupefy."

The next moment, he realized his plan had one major flaw.

He had not expected Harry to attack him.

As soon as the two hyenas were stunned, the third one pounced on him. He had almost stunned it too, but Harry shot a spell at him. He only had a second to dodge the spell and the animal.

"DO YOU WANT TO PLAY, LOVE!?" The man laughed like a maniac and shot another purple-colored spell at him, which Tom recognized as a blinding spell.

What the hell!? Harry had lost his mind.

As the man shot spell after spell at him, the hyena had managed to scratch him once.

He was going to die.

Tom had to duel with Harry and run away from the hyena at the same time, which was proving to be very difficult. Merlin, why had he never practised actual dueling with Harry before? The man dueled as if he was dancing. It was impossible to win against him. 

Tom tripped over a body, which gave the hyena the chance to pounce on him. He felt the weight of the animal on him and saw the razor sharp teeth of his face with wide eyes.

"Nyx has caught you, darling!" He heard Harry say.

The hyena raised one of its paws and struck it towards his face. Tom  closed his eyes and felt one of its claws touch his cheek.

But then everything stopped.

He first heard a thump, which gained the hyena's attention. Then, the animal itself started to struggle before it went limp.

The weight on him disappeared.

Only then did Tom open his eyes. It took a few moments to clear his vision. He then saw a pale hand, which he gripped and stood up.

Cedric was looking at him with a slight frown. "I thought you could do this alone."

Tom glowered at him and then looked around.

Harry laid unconscious on the floor. The blood reached till his cheeks. Nyx was laying down beside Cedric's feet.

"She's not dead right?"

Cedric snorted. "Do you think I'm foolish enough to kill one of Harry's beloved pets? He and the rest of those would have me for dinner. She's merely unconscious. Let's get our Lord to the infirmary first."

Cedric picked up Harry easily and led Tom out of the dungeons.

"Tom!" Hermione and Sirius shouted with concern when they saw him.

Tom thought that he made quite a picture. Ruffled, blood dripping from their clothes, messy hair, a few scratches here and there.

Cedric came in after him, with Harry in his arms. Each person paled when they saw their Lord, their friend. The man was trembling slightly. His body was warmer than normal and his skin looked flushed.

Luna and Draco ushered everybody except Cedric, who laid Harry on a bed and went towards the potions cabinet.

As the rest of them stood outside, Tom started pacing.

At present, he was conflicted between two emotions. Concern for Harry and the desire to just sleep.

This day was like an emotional rollercoaster.

He remembered the panic and fear when the aurors had caught him. The pain during the time he spent in the holding cells. The betrayal and anger when Harry didn't say anything during the whole trial. How Harry had just let them put him into Azkaban. The hopelessness and cold on the island where the prison was. The relief and confusion when Ginny saved him. The fear when he saw Harry's white eyes.

He noticed Hermione standing near him and went towards her.

"How many times has this happened before?"

Hermione looked at him and answered, "This is the second time. He normally doesn't lose control over himself."

"Alright... The room in the dungeons. What exactly was it?" He still shivered when he remembered the room downstairs.

"Well, it is also a torture room. But just, the more extreme stuff takes place there. It's more.... bloody."

Yes. It was an understatement.

"Do you all use the room?" He asked warily.

Tom did not want to step in that room ever again. Call him a coward or whatever you want. Seeing someone's inside wasn't something he enjoyed.

Hermione seemed to understand what he was thinking, because she smiled reassuringly at him and said, "Not at all. Only Harry and Cedric are the ones who use it the most. Sometimes, I mean rarely, does anyone else step inside that room. Harry's pets don't like anyone, of course him being the exception. I think they just ignore Cedric while he's in there."

They spent at least half-an-hour outside the infirmary, when Draco opened the door and let them inside.

Tom rushed inside and went to the bed Harry was laying on. The man looked so peaceful when he was sleeping. So different just from the man a few minutes ago.

After everyone left, Tom sat beside him and carded his hands through the messy black hair. "I don't know whether to be annoyed with you or kiss you sometimes."

Three days later, Harry woke up.

During those three days, Tom did not leave the infirmary much.

To be honest, he was slightly cut off from the world. Whenever anyone tried to tell him about the news from the wizarding world, Tom would ask him to stop.

It was not that Harry was dying or anything, Tom just did not want to deal with the world for now.

The day Harry woke up, Tom was seated just beside him, and was reading a book.

"Harry." He whispered, shifting closer to him and took hold of his left hand.

The man shifted slightly on the bed before opening his eyes.

"Hmm.... Tom?"

"Yes, it's me. Let me help you."

He helped Harry to a sitting position. As soon as he sat up, Harry grabbed his hand and his eyes roamed all over his eyes.

"Are you alright, darling?"

Tom chuckled slightly and asked, "You are the one who was unconscious for three days and you ask me whether I'm alright?"

Harry smiled at him but then he looked down.

"What's it, Harry? What's wrong?" He asked, concerned.

"What's wrong? Everything's wrong. I failed and nearly got you killed. You were arrested because of me. Dumbledore! That old coot was there during the raid! And I did not even notice! How could I not notice him there?" The man said with frustration, looking up at the ceiling.

"Hey, hey, hey. Nobody knew what Dumbledore would do. Even Death had no idea. And you're a human, Harry. Even if you're immortal, you're a human. We do make mistakes. And you had a plan to save me. I'm here. It's alright."

Though Harry still looked unconvinced, he nodded.

Tom then started to tell Harry about the past few days, which wasn't much

After a while, Harry asked, "Just tell Dumbledore's in trouble, right?"

Tom blinked and asked, "Why?"

Harry's eyes darkened and he demanded, "He managed to get away from that?"

"From what?"

"The letter!"

"Letter? You mean the parchment Ginny stuck on the auror?"

"Yes!"

"Actually, he doesn't know what's happening outside these four walls." Luna said, almost floating inside the room.

She had come to check on Harry when she saw them talking.

Tom blushed at Harry's surprised look.

"Tom, you didn't have to do that."

"I was worried for you."

The man touched his cheeks slightly and kissed him softly.

"So, is Dumbledore in trouble?" He asked Luna.

"Yes, my Lord. The people have started to become suspicious of the bee." She said with a smirk.

"What was in the letter?" Tom asked, feeling out of loop.

Harry then proceeded to tell him about the contents of the letter.

BREAKING NEWS!
One more innocent in Azkaban?

Dear readers, the title unsettles you right ? None  of us would ever think that our ministry would  send innocent people to Azkaban.

But with great regret, I will inform you that they can. And they will with their eyes closed.

Twenty years ago, Sirius Black, current Lord Noir, was sent to Azkaban. Thirteen years after his imprisonment it was revealed that the lord was innocent all along .

We thought it would be only one mistake. That there would be no more. 

But alas, that's not true.

Yesterday, Tom Riddle, Lord Slytherin, who is in a courtship with Hadrian Peverell, met a similar fate.

On 31st October, Lord Slytherin was arrested by the aurors at 3.30 am, suspected of  being a Reaper. Then the next day, he was trailed and   found guilty. He was immediately escorted to Azkaban at the end of the trial.

This is what the official documents state.

Now, you might think there's nothing wrong with this, right?

Let me tell you the horrible reality of the trial .

Lord Slytherin wasn't allowed to utter a single word in his defense during the whole trial. Nothing from his side of the story .

Even Lord Peverell had pleaded for the use of Veritaserum, but he was waved off without any thought or reason.

The only person who spoke during the whole trial before the judgement was passed was Albus Dumbledore, the current transfiguration professor at Hogwarts.

What kind of a trial was that? No witnesses. No  one to speak from the side of the accused. Nothing.

There's only one question on our minds.

Why?

Why was Lord Slytherin treated this way? Why is  that even the most dangerous criminals were given a proper trial but not Lord Slytherin? Or Lord Black, for that matter, twenty years back?

Why only did the two people close to Lord Peverell face this? Were these attempts to put down the young lord, or something even more sinister?

And if you think this is horrible, there's  more.

The day Lord Slytherin was being taken to Azkaban, someone attacked the aurors who were with him.

The five aurors escorting him were killed and Head Auror Moody along with Lord Slytherin were not found. Lord Hades' Dark Mark was burned on the walls of Azkaban.

Lord Hades had attacked them.

A small note was left behind , which  said:

If he is supposed to be my Reaper, I think I can keep him, right Albus?

How many innocents will you keep sending here in this damned place?

The letter clearly tells us that Lord Slytherin  wasn't a Reaper, but was framed as one .

But why?

According to the Dark Lord, Albus Dumbledore has to do something with this.

The transfigurations professor hasn't made any statements as of yet.

What this mystery is, we, at Daily Prophet, promise to get to the bottom of it and bring it into the light .

~ Natasha Evans

Chapter Text

"Dumbledore's reputation has gone down in the last three days." Ron said.

Harry, Tom, Ron and Hermione were sitting in Harry's study.

Hermione had sent a letter to Dippet the day Tom was arrested, which said that Harry won't be teaching at Hogwarts for a week. First, Tom's arrest, and then his disappearance had taken a toll on him. That he was not in a state to teach and will return in a week, hopefully better.

The Headmaster had replied with a– "Take as long as you need, Hadrian. I know that these events weren't fair to you. I only hope that you'll be reunited with Tom and that both of will come back healthy and fit."

There was a letter from Dumbledore too, which went on about how Tom had to be a part of the Dark Lord's army, as the man saved him from going to Azkaban. How Tom was not as innocent as Harry believed him to be and all. Harry had burned the letter after reading half of it, and sent a very simple and polite (at least according to him) letter to Dumbledore. "Go fuck yourself."

The Daily Prophet had also taken many interviews of various students from Hogwarts. Most of them revolved around how Tom was treated by Dumbledore. The most common answer was how Dumbledore seemed to have a personal vendetta against the boy, even when he was just a eleven-year-old boy.

Even the Gryffindors had spoken up against the man, which was quite a feat.

The letter Ginny had left behind had damaged Dumbledore's reputation the most.

The man had faced a very thorough questioning from the ICW.

Fudge too, was in a very precarious position. 'How could the Minister be do blind? Can we trust the man?' Were the headlines of the Daily Prophet.

"There are several search groups sent to find Tom by the Auror Department. Fudge wants to get back in your good graces." Hermione said, eyeing the fifth letter the Minister of magical Britain had sent to Harry.

Harry sneered at the letter. As if he'll ever forgive the man. Harry remembered how he had literally begged the man to permit the use of Veritaserum during Tom's trial.

Dumbledore had made an excellent move that day, if he was honest. After arresting Tom late at night, when Harry had been asleep, Dumbledore had more than six hours to convince the people in the Wizengamot to imprison Tom.

Harry, on the other hand, was informed of the arrest at eight the next morning. There was nothing he could do. He had tried to convince as many people as he could, which was disgustingly low compared to the one's Dumbledore had.

He had almost made up his mind to attack the Ministry, when he had noticed Ginny.

On such a short notice, he hadn't got the chance to tell anyone about it.

But when he had seen Ginny in the Ministry, Harry had almost jumped up in delight. Finally there was a way to save his Tom from a horrible stay at Azkaban. Not that Harry couldn't have broken into the old fortress. It was just that he did not want his darling to even step inside that place. They came up with the plan to save Tom just ten minutes before the start of the trial.

But then, all his (relatively) good mood had vanished when he had seen his beloved's state.

No matter how hard the aurors had tried to hide them, Harry had immediately noticed the pain on Tom's face, and the bruises on his body.

Seeing how much Tom was limping was enough for him to know what he had gone through.

Then came the agony of silence.

He wanted to speak up. Oh, how much he just wanted to stand up and speak for Tom.

Harry had always been a good speaker. From debates in Ilvermorny to speaking up for the oppressed magical beings at MACUSA, his speeches had been enough to make the authorities listen to him. To get him what he wanted.

So it was pure agony to just sit by and say nothing as his Tom was falsely accused and punished.

But there was nothing he could do, except outright attacking the Ministry, which he would have done gladly, had not Ginny been there that day.

He had begged, bribed and shouted. He wanted to postpone the trial time, to get enough witnesses which would've proved Tom's innocence. Harry had done everything he could as a politician, but was brushed off with a ''you are in shock, young man".

Dumbledore had a lot of control over Britain. Even those who did not like him, did not dare to try and talk against the old man.

The light families believed everything Dumbledore had said.

The neutral ones were too used to Dumbledore getting what he wanted. (Lord Greengrass had tried to speak up for Tom, but was rebuked)

The dark families were mostly controlled by Lucius Malfoy. That fool.

Harry had to pinch himself to not to curse the man. (But he vowed to get his revenge one day)

His rage had just kept on increasing during the entirety of the trial. Seeing the bruises on his darling, hearing the insults thrown at him, then seeing him being manhandled by those idiot aurors had him boiling with rage.

Harry remembered apparating directly to his headquarters from the Ministry (which was a foolish thing to do. Anyone could have traced his magical signature to the place and all his hardwork would have been destroyed).

He had known what was going to  happen once he had gone down to the dungeons. But he had been too furious to care.

"Let him beg however long he can. His days are numbered anyways." Harry said.

"You need to go back to Hogwarts by next week." Ron said, looking pointedly at Tom.

Oh yes. Tom had gotten used to Harry's presence everyday. After a week, they would have to live kind of separated.

Tom knew that he could not go back to Hogwarts, but it still hurt. He had just got the best of his school days, his friends, and now it was all snatched away from him.

He did not even know what his friends thought of him. Did they still see him as their friend, or a liar? After all, he had lied to them. As far as he knew, people did not like it when their friends lied to them.

He wondered what all would he miss?

Would Theo and Daphne start to date now? The awkwardness between them was downright painful.

Would Astoria find a nice blond to date? She was absolutely attracted to blondes, no matter their gender.

What about Graham and Adrian? What did they think of him now?

And what about the new members? They might've left the court the minute after Tom was pulled out of the common room.

As he was lost in his thoughts, Tom felt a hand caressing his cheek. He looked up and saw Harry looking at him with understanding. "Do not fret, darling. I swear, I'll find a way to smuggle you in that old school."

Tom smiled at him and said, "Of course you will."

Albus cursed.

His plan had not only failed spectacularly, but also bounced back on him!

He had barely managed to keep himself out of prison.

Riddle was supposed to be in Azkaban! How in the world the damned Hades got to know about his arrest was a mystery to him!

Just how far that upstart's reach was!?

He remembered the faces of his colleagues the day he had come back after Riddle's arrest. He had never seen Dippet look so disgusted.

The man had given him a lecture on how he should have informed the headmaster and Hadrian about the aurors and minister at Hogwarts, and then should have worried about Riddle's arrest.

Still, Albus had managed to calm the old man.

But then came the newspaper!

How had the damn newspaper managed to interview the students!?

Dippet had almost sacked him. Albus had to beg him not to. Though he had taken away Albus' right to give and take points, detentions and even to meet students outside the classroom.

On the top of that, Hadrian wasn't responding to any of his letters. The brat had only sent three words to him, which made him want to strangle the boy. Did the brat have no respect for his elders!? Then again, James and Lily weren't around to teach him that.

Even though this situation was bad, Albus knew that it would pass.

But what worried him more was Lord Hades.

This person was better than he had initially thought.

Albus had to look for more information on that person.

He took a parchment and quill from his desk and started writing a letter to his only spy in the Dark Lord's army.

Chapter Text

Gabrielle and Ginny were standing in front of a rather lovely mansion.

Though the building was tiny compared to the Peverell Manor, or even both their homes for that matter, it was good.

The building was white and golden from outside. In the garden, an orange cat was roaming around, sometimes clawing at the insects near it.

Yet, the mansion's loveliness wasn't going to help the people inside it today.

Samuel Williams and Dena Williams lived inside, along with their only daughter, Jenny Williams.

Now here's the funny thing about them. All of them were light wizards. The parents were light supremacists who worshipped the ground Dumbledore walked on.

The mother, Dena, was the second daughter to Florence Abbott, the brother to the current Lord Abbott. Florence was almost disowned from the family, for nearly killing his older brother, who had just graduated from Hogwarts and was going to study dark arts for his Masters. 

Still, Florence did not change, and brought up his daughter to believe the same.

So, Dena grew up hating Dark Wizards.

Then she met Samuel. He was a muggleborn wizard with lovely parents. They had accepted their son as he was, without any prejudices.

It was Dumbledore who had introduced Sam, as he likes to call himself, to the wonders of the magical world. Since then, he has had a sort of bond with the man. Like an uncle and nephew. The man would give him extra points, would console him whenever the Slytherins bullied him and was generally good natured. For Sam, Dumbledore was a hero.

So, Jenny grew up on the tales of the greatness of Albus Dumbledore.

Though she respected the old man, sometimes, she got bored of hearing his praises.

Honestly, her parents were nice people, but they absolutely hated anything to do with dark magic.

So naturally, they were furious when she had introduced them to her girlfriend, who was a dark wizard.

Now, Jenny herself was not interested in dark magic. At least, at first.

But when she met Amara, everything changed. She was more open to the concept of dark magic. Amara had graduated from Ilvermony, and they had met each other in Australia.

Her parents absolutely hated Amara, which had caused a rift in their family.

Jenny, in all her righteous anger, had left them and started to live with her girlfriend in New York. It was then, she got to know about Hadrian Peverell.

She had heard of him before, but he was like a fictional character for her. The child of the savior who will continue his father's work and fight alongside Albus Dumbledore against the evil wizards. A hero from a child's tale.

Amara and Hadrian were in the same year, so they had known each other. Her girlfriend had a meeting with him about something, so Jenny had tagged along.

Her fictional idea of him had shattered when she got to know about his true nature.

The man was a dark Wizard.

A budding Dark Lord.

Jenny would've laughed at it, thinking of it as a joke, if it weren't for the piercing sharp green eyes staring at her.

Though she had felt a bit betrayed by her girlfriend, she could not blame her. After all, Jenny was a light witch whose parents supported Dumbledore.

It might've been the love for Amara, or the anger against her parents, but she had decided to join Lord Hades.

The next few years weren't that special, in regards to her dark secret. She hadn't got in touch with her parents, and still lived with Amara.

But it had all changed on 1st of January, this year.

Lord Hades had planned his first raid, and Jenny had known what would happen there. She had known that there would be bloodshed, torture and killing.

The Dark Lord had offered those who hadn't wanted to fight, the option to stay behind. But Jenny knew that Amara would go and fight. She had not wanted to be seen as a coward or something, so she went along with the others, brushing off her girlfriend's concerns.

It was horrible.

Jenny had cried and puked after they had come back from the raid. She had locked herself in her room, unable to do anything but cry. She should have stayed. Fighting and killing, she wasn't capable of it. It disgusted her.

At first, she had tried to act normal, go to the raids as planned, spend time with her girlfriend, but slowly, had distanced herself away from everyone. No matter how much Amara had pleaded, Jenny would not tell her what was wrong.

She would have blamed her light orientation for her state, if it weren't for the fact that there were many light wizards in the army. Heck, even the Dark Lord's closest Reapers, Ronald Weasley and Hermione Granger were light and neutral wizards themselves.

Everything started to fall apart then. Her relationship with her girlfriend, her friends, even her job.

She became a shell of the person she was.

Then one day, she saw the newspapers. Hadrian Peverell now had a partner?

She was furious when she saw the picture of the man holding hands with another boy. The boy looked barely above eighteen, no doubt a student.

Her perfect life was destroyed since the start of the new year, whereas the man's got better.

Hadrian Peverell was a monster.

Jenny remembered how the man enjoyed the raids. The glee on his face as he slaughtered families. There was no regret, no sadness on his face as he murdered the innocents. There were even rumors that the way he acted during the raids was nothing compared to the torture he inflicted upon those who resided in the dungeons of the headquarters.

Jenny hated him since that day. But there was nothing she could do about it.

Her life was drowning in the darkness when she had once again met Albus Dumbledore.

For her, he was like an angel.

The man's light and honest aura had made her feel like she was at home. Seeing him had given her hope, like ker life was going to be alright once again.

Jenny did not know what she had expected from the man, but surely not what the man had asked for.

To betray her Lord.

She remembered the terror she had felt when the old man had asked her about the Dark Lord's next raid.

Lord Hades had eyes and ears almost everywhere. Having dark creatures like vampires and werewolves, who had extraordinary hearing, gave the man a lot of power.

She still did not know how Professor Dumbledore discovered her secrets.

That day, her trust, her belief in yet another person had shattered.

All her life, Jenny had thought of Dumbledore as a person who could do no bad. God's reincarnation in some way. Smarter than the smartest Ravenclaw, kinder than a Hufflepuff and brave as Godric Gryffindor himself (that's exactly how her dad described Dumbledore). Not a hint of those slimy Slytherins.

So when the man had blatantly, with sweet, kind words, threatened to throw her in Azkaban, Jenny wanted to cry.

Why were people not the way they were perceived?

When she had given up the information on the raid, she had tried to be as vague as possible. Not that she could say much, the Dark Lord had put secrecy spells on their lockets.

The only reason she was able to spill the information, was because Dumbledore had done some sort of ritual, which lifted the secrecy spell just a little bit. It was dark magic, but the old man had said, "Victories need sacrifice, dear girl."

When she had given up the information, she had thought that the man would inform the aurors about it. Or maybe fight against the Lord Hades with the Order of Phoenix by his side. Lay some trap? Anything?

But nothing had happened.

The raid had gone smoothly, blood was shed and people were killed.

Jenny was relieved to know that maybe she wouldn't die early. No one would ever know about her deceit.

Yet, all her relief had turned into ice cold dread when she had read the Daily Prophet the next day.

Tom Riddle, her Lord's partner, was accused of being a Reaper, and was arrested. The boy was then punished with a life sentence in Azkaban and was then kidnapped by Lord Hades.

She had not focused much on the entire news, but on the Riddle boy's pale features.

She was a healer by profession, and could immediately tell that the boy's stay in the holding cells hadn't been nice. Then she saw Hadrian Peverell's indifferent face, which was printed right next to Riddle's picture.

To anyone else, he would seem as sad, hopeless even, but she knew otherwise. The man was furious.

Jenny knew at that exact moment that she was going to die.

No matter how hard she tried to hide it, the man would know the truth. Even if it took months, he would look into each of his Reaper's mind to find the traitor. No amount of begging would save her.

So Jenny had done the thing she wanted to do since her first raid.

She ran away.

Jenny left all her belongings in her shared apartment with Amara, killed a person and spelled them to look like her, and ran back to her parents.

She knew that her pitiful attempt to make it look like she was dead would not fool her Lord, but at least it would give her more time.

When she went back to Britain to her parents house, she wrote a will for herself.

When she died, Jenny wanted at least a bit of revenge.

After sending the letter to Gringotts, she went to her parents, who looked surprised to see her, and cried.

For four days, she lived in a haze. No matter what her parents said, she would not talk or react. All their sharp words, the 'I knew that girl was bad since the moment I'd seen her, Jen', everything went unheard.

Jenny wished that her once fictional hero would be merciful enough to leave her love, Amara, alone. Jenny felt guilty each time she thought about her girlfriend. She had betrayed her beloved.

She also felt guilty about putting her parents' life in danger. The Dark Lord wasn't merciful. He would kill everyone she cared for in front of her, before killing her, slowly. Still, they shouldn't have brought her up to trust Dumbledore. That she could share her darkest secret with the man, and he would save her.

Jenny knew that it wouldn't be long before Lord Hades found her.

So when the doors of her parents' mansion were blasted open, and two figures in black robes had entered her house, she wasn't surprised.

A blonde and red haired girl entered the manor and smiled sadistically.

Before her parents could react, Jenny moved forward, stood in front of them and begged.
"Please! Have mercy! Please don't kill them and Amara! They haven't done anything wrong! It was all my fault. Do whatever pleases you to me! Please let them live!" She cried.

Ginny Wealey, who looked somewhat similar to her, smiled sadistically at her and said, "Amara will not be killed, dear."

Jenny visibly relaxed at that.

"Stupefy." Gabrielle said, stunning the girl and then her screaming parents.

It would have been even better if she had heard the next words.

"She'll be the one to kill you."

Chapter Text

When Jenny was conscious, the first thing she felt was that she was on a very hard surface. Floor, perhaps.

Second, that her body was aching, like it was in a really bad position for a very long time.

Her memories had blurred a bit, but she had a really good dream. She and Amara were on a date in a lovely garden, her parents were with her, and were really proud of her, she had just received the best Healer award. Everything was perfect.

So waking up was something she did not want to do.

"Sweety." She heard her dad's voice. He sounded like he had cried a lot and was now on the verge of breaking.

"What have you done?" She heard her mother's sharp, but still broken words.

Her dad was the more easy going one from the two of them. No matter what Jenny did, how wrong it was, he would still love her and try to explain things gently. He was an auror.

Her mother was sweet, but still a kind of traditional pureblood. Yes, she had no problems with muggles and muggleborns, but she was strict when it came to disciplines.

They were both in Hufflepuff, and were generally jolly people.

So their broken tone confused her.

Why were they talking like this? What had she done?

When she opened her eyes, she was first. greeted with darkness. It was after a moment that she realized that wherever she was, it wasn't blacked out, but was just dim lighting.

When her vision adjusted to the dim light, she saw a pair of shoes. By the looks of it, they were really expensive. Black leather shoes with intricate silver designs on them.

Before she could ponder more on who the person was, she was lifted harshly from the ground and came face to face with the furious face of the Dark Lord.

The memories about what happened earlier rushed back and she whimpered.

"I-I-I'm so-so s-sor-rry, m-my L-lord. I-I did n-not—"

Before she could continue, he slapped her hard across her face and hissed, "You are a fool if you think you can get out of this, Williams. Crucio!"

As expected, the curse hurt a lot.

Jenny had seen him use the curse on many people, even sometimes his followers when they did something too wrong. They said that the cruciatus felt like hundreds of hot knives stabbing them. According to some, it was mild. But nothing compared to the strength of the cruciatus curse their Lord used on the prisoners.

And it was true.

This did not feel like hundreds of hot knives but like every nerve of her body was on fire and that she was simultaneously being stabbed, kicked, punched and crushed. Jenny did not even realize that she was screaming and crying by the time the curse was lifted.

Everything hurt. She wanted this to stop. 'It hurts. It hurts. Please stop! Stop! Please! Just end this! Painpainpainpain.'

How long had it been? Days? Months? Surely it felt like it.

But to her dismay, she was still in the same room. Had it been just minutes? She was curled up on the floor and was crying.

Why did she choose this? Why didn't she just go on with her life as it was, instead of giving in to the demands of that cursed old man?

Then she realized someone was screaming. No, some people. They were screaming.

"Please! Please don't do this! Please! I beg you! Please don't hurt her!"

"Have mercy! Please! We'll do anything you want! Just let us live!"

Oh Merlin, it was her parents.

With great effort, Jenny lifted her head and looked up.

It was the first time she looked around the room in which she was.

Her parents were kneeling just in front of a throne-like chair. (It was then Jenny realized that she was in the headquarter's meeting room. She liked to call this room as the 'Throne Room').

They were bound and facing her, crying and screaming at the top of their lungs. They were struggling to free themselves from their bounds, but she knew it was useless. Jenny had seen many different people in the same position numerous times. None of them had ever lived.

She also realized that she was in the center of the Hall. Every Reapers was present in the hall today. They were all standing in a vague semicircular position, all facing her. Some of them looked gleeful, some disgusted and some indifferent. Jenny spotted her friends standing there too. None of them looked even a bit sad that she was going to be killed.

The Knights, the inner circle members were standing in front of the Repaers, all spread out, forming a circle. Their faces were filled with rage.

Oh yes. They all personally knew the Riddle boy.  If he could win the heart of the Dark Lord, he surely was liked by the Knights too. Because of her foolishness, the boy was hurt. And they all wanted revenge.

The boy himself was present today, which was new. He hadn't ever attended any meeting, in spite of living in the Peverell Manor. Jenny thought that the boy was either training hard to fit into the role of the Dark Lord's Consort, or did not know about Hadrian Peverell's dark secret.

It seemed like it was the former, as the boy was standing beside the 'throne'. He looked a mix between furious and indifferent. Well, he had the right to be angry, as she was the reason why he was nearly thrown into Azkaban.

Then she noticed the Dark Lord.

The man looked like the devil himself. Jenny was seriously scared of meeting his eyes, ever since she had met him. They were just too cold and resembled the killing curse too much. So she kept her head down.

Then she noticed Amara.

Seeing her, Jenny's heart filled with hurt. Her girlfriend looked beautiful as ever. Her curly black hair was tied in a braid. She was wearing the robes which was given to every Reaper by the Dark Lord. And her black eyes, which were warm whenever they looked at Jenny were so war—

No.

Jenny realized that Amara was glaring at her with hate filled eyes.

What?

Before she could think anything, many curses flew at her.

Pain. Pain. Pain. Pain.

What started with a cruciatus turned into a really bad torture.

Curses after curses were thrown at her, every curse causing her pain. Her body was cut, burned, stretched, broken and sadistically, were healed to the best condition once again. Whenever the Dark Lord thought that Jenny was losing a lot of blood, a Blood Replenishing Potion was put down her throat. No matter how much ever she begged, they wouldn't end this torture.

Every other Reaper gulped when they saw what was happening in front of them. Each one of them knew that the Williams girl must have done something really bad to anger their Lord so much, but still did not realize why this was happening in front of them. Generally, such blood and gore-y torture was done in the deeper parts of the dungeons or the secret 'Torture Room', but never in the meeting hall.

Many of them ever fainted and puked as the Dark Lord continued to torture the girl.

After nearly forty-five minutes, the Dark Lord stopped and moved closer to Jenny.

She flinched when she felt the cold hand touch her face.

"I'm still not done with you. You're not dying easily, if you think so. But there's something I'm wondering about, what to do with Sam and Dena? Should they go through what you went through, or should I simply kill them? Tell me Jenny." The man said.

"P-please l-let th-them l-l-live, my-my Lord. T-they a-are in-innocent." She cried.

Lord Hades clicked his tongue and said in mock pity, "There, you lost your chance to give them an easy death, poor Jenny." He then leaned closer to her and whispered, "Do you know how it feels to know that someone you love is being hurt and you can't do anything? Have you ever felt like this? No? Let me help you experience it."

He pushed her to the ground and moved towards her parents.

Jenny tried to get up, but was unable to. The Dark Lord's magic was pinning her down. She cried and screamed as the man tortured her parents. No matter how much she begged, the man did not stop.

Just like her, the man tortured and healed them.

Finally, finally the man stopped after some time. But by then, her parents barely resembled something more than a mass of flesh on the floor.

The Dark Lord once again walked to her and asked with a grin, "How was the show?"

Furious, she spat at the man and said, "Y-you're a monster! They hadn't done anything to you!" She cried at the end.

The man laughed and said, "Oh yes, dear Jenny, I'm a monster. I don't deny it. But your parents as innocent? Now that's funny."

"They were good people!"

"Good? What good person beats someone black and blue before their trial? What kind of fucked up logic is that?" The man sneered.

Her anger drained at that. Jenny had heard rumors, but she'd always thought they were lies. Her dad wouldn't do that. He surely wouldn't.

But still, she remembered sometimes seeing her dad's bruised knuckles, the unnerving satisfaction as he came back from his guard duty of the holding cells. But the people deserved it right?

('Not always', a voice in her mind said, which she had always ignored.)

The man smiled mockingly and said, "See. You yourself know this. Sam deserved this. It hurts, doesn't it? Knowing all you believed was a lie. Like a fictional hero."

Jenny sobbed and shook her head in denial.

The Dark Lord laughed and said loudly, "Don't worry, they're alive. We don't want this fun to end this early, don't we, Jenny?" He kicked her once in the face and called out, "Amara Lozano, please come here."

Jenny whimpered as her girlfriend came near her.

No. They had promised not to hurt her.

"Y-you promised." She said as Amara reached them and kneeled before the man.

"My Lord." Amara said.

"Miss Lozano, I give you the right to decide what to do with Jenny's pitiful life. After all, I'm a merciful Lord, aren't I?" The man grinned and asked.

Every person inside the room gasped.

The Dark Lord wasn't merciful at all.

Jenny felt hope blossom in her heart. The Dark Lord wouldn't kill her love. Amara would save her, and maybe she could beg for her parents' life too. If it happens, she would run away with Amara and never return.

She looked up at Amara with hope filled eyes.

Maybe she should've known not to trust people with her life by now.

When she saw the cold and indifferent look on her girlfriend's face, she froze. Her girlfriend wasn't like this. Yes, Amara was dark and had killed people, but she genuinely cared for her family and friends. Jenny was her girlfriend for heaven's sake!

But when Amara spoke, Jenny's heart shattered in a million pieces.

"Do whatever you wish to, my Lord." Amara said.

The man laughed maniacally and leaned closer to Jenny and spoke very softly, "Poor, poor Jenny. Betrayed by the only person she loved. How fickle is trust, isn't it?"

"How?" She asked brokenly. Amara wasn't like this. Even if Jenny had broken her trust, this was extreme, to let the Dark Lord torture her.

"You know, heartbreak and betrayal makes a person desperate. Your pitiful attempt to make it seem that you're dead didn't even fool her, let alone me. She came here, to me, and told me the complete truth. What you did, how you ran away, how you weren't able to cope up with the raids. Pathetic, that's what you are. Instead of knowing your place, you lied. And for what? To make yourself look worthy in her eyes? Poor Amara, so heartbroken by her girlfriend's deceit, that she begged me to erase her memories of you." Jenny gasped.

"Oh yes. She begged me to change three years of her memories, just to forget you. You're a healer, aren't you? You know the the consequences of altering memories right? It's dangerous. A person could go insane. But she did it, just to forget about your pathetic existence." The man said cruelly.

Jenny sobbed and cried brokenly.

Was she really so bad that Amara had risked her mind just to forget her?

The Dark Lord moved away from the broken girl and spoke with a cold, hard voice, "You all might be wondering why you had to watch this. Simply because I wanted you to know the consequences of betraying me. If you do, I'll hunt you down from whatever miserable hole you're hiding in and destroy you, your family and everyone you hold dear to. Understand?"

Every Reaper nodded fearfully and murmured, "Yes, my Lord."

The Dark Lord snapped his finger and a house-elf popped in beside the sobbing girl.

"Throw her and those two inside the dungeons." He said, pointing at Jenny and her parents.

"Yes, master."

The creature held the girl's and her parents' shirt and apparated away to the dungeons.

"Dismissed." The Dark Lord said to everyone, as he sat on the throne-like chair.

Every Reaper, including the Knights, moved out through the door, leaving only the Dark Lord and Tom inside.

Chapter Text

As soon as the last person left the Hall, Harry turned to look at Tom and asked him, "Are you alright, sweet?"

Tom smiled at Harry and said, "Of course I am. Why would you think otherwise?"

Harry pulled him closer, Tom ended up sitting on his lap. "Just worried." He then caressed Tom's cheek and kissed him. Tom's hand went to the older man's neck as he deepened the kiss. Their hands wrapped around each other tightly.

Harry always smelled and tasted like chocolate, which Tom loved. He had a sweet tooth which rivaled Remus.

Generally, this type of activity wasn't allowed in a courtship. A chaste kiss was acceptable but to make out like this? In his mind, Tom sniggered as he thought about the scandalized faces of the snobby purebloods. He leaned back to breath and tilted his head as Harry's lips moved to his jaws and neck. Since they both did not have parents, as bad as it sounded, they had nobody to stop them.

Well, that's what he thought until he heard someone hiss loudly.

"TOMMY!"

Red-faced, he tried to move away from Harry, but the man held his waist tightly before kissing him firmly on his lips for a long moment, and then let him get up from his lap.

"Uh... Hello, Nagini. Serene." He greeted the two snakes as he tried to compose himself.

Nagini glared at Harry, if it was even possible, as the man smirked at her. Serene wrapped herself around his shoulder and said, "Sorry for disturbing you, Master."

Tom choked at the words as Harry said, "No problem, Tom and I can continue later."

Nagini hissed at the two angrily "Look, I get that you saved my hatchling, but you'll not mate him until you marry!"  Nagini said.

"Of course, ma'am." Harry said, though his arm snaked around Tom's waist.

"Come on, Nag. You're too grumpy today. Let's go to the forest for some hunting. I'll entertain you." Serene said as she slithered from Harry's shoulder and pushed her out of the Hall.

Harry smiled fondly, which looked quite disturbing due to the blood on his face. (It was because of Serene. There was a lot of blood on the floor.)

"You have blood on your face." Tom said, pointing at his chin and jaw.

"Well, won't you help me clean it, darling?" Harry said with a grin and grabbed his arm as he side-apparated him from the room.

The next day, Harry went back to Hogwart, with a promise to Tom to come back home every weekend.

When his portkey dropped him at Hogsmeade, he tried to make himself look sad. Going to Hogwarts with a smirk would look very, very suspicious. Still, he smiled slightly as he remembered Tom's dazed and flushed face as he had kissed his darling before using the portkey.

He took a deep breath as he walked towards Hogwarts.

Harry looked the perfect picture of a sad, worried and 'anything can make me either cry or angry' person.

When he reached the wards, Dippet was standing there along with the rest of the teachers except Snape. Harry smiled at them dimly as the Headmaster came forward and hugged him, patting his back. "I hope you're fine, Hadrian."

"I'm a bit better."

"How have you been?" The man asked with concern.

"Okay, I guess." He shrugged and continued, "I was mostly at home. My uncles and friends, they were there with me. For a few days, I've been working with the Aurors to find my.... Tom" His voice cracked at the end.

"He is a strong wizard, my boy. Don't worry, he will be fine." Dippet said.

The rest of the teachers said some similar words and told him about their grief and anger at Tom's arrest.

"The aurors and someone made a huge mistake. They'll pay for it." Slughorn said and glanced at Dumbledore.

The said man came forward and smiled at him with pity. As the man was about to touch him, Harry moved away from him. The man frowned and said, "My boy, I'm really sorry. I had always known that Mr. Riddle would end up like this. I should've done something about it."

Harry hissed at the man angrily, almost slipping into Parseltongue.

"No. You should be sorry since because of you, Tom is missing. He had told me many times that you have some sort of personal vendetta against him. So you don't have any fucking right to say anything about him! Don't you ever try talk to me, you fucking old dirty son of—!"

"Calm down, Hadrian." Dippet said, cutting off his insult. The man kept a hand on his shoulder and pulled him away from Dumbledore, shooting the old man a glare. "I'll accompany you till your quarters. And Albus, please watch what you're saying, or you will end up getting fired." He threatened Dumbledore and went away with Harry.