Smile
Summary: There is nothing in the world more terrifying than Tom Riddle's smile.
Disclaimer: I own no story elements created by anyone else.
Smile. Everyone did it, Tom noted. There was something very methodical about it. The sender of the smile would do so when greeting another, or as an expression of contentment or satisfaction. The recipient would in most cases respond with a smile and the mood of their surroundings would become lighter as a result of the exchange. He knew all this, but what he didn't understand was just how they smiled.
It was done with an upward curve of the lips, sure, and a general upward tilt of the whole mouth. Often times, teeth were put on display (though this often depended upon how yellow the teeth were, or how old you were). Smiling was not to be confused with a smirk. Smiles were meant as positive, good emotion, and thus it was imperative that Tom learned how to smile.
He could charm others well enough but given enough time spent around him, people would eventually realize that something was off. Eleven year old Tom Riddle never smiled.
So here he was, sitting in front of the small mirror kept in his room, curving his lips upwards in what was surely a ridiculous-looking gesture. He just couldn't get both sides curved evenly, which gave him a lopsided – whatever this was. Tom scowled and his features immediately shifted into perfection. Yes, he was meant to scowl. But still, Tom sighed, he had to learn how to smile. How was he to rule the wizarding world if he couldn't fool everyone?
Hours later, Tom strolls down the hallway, pleased. He had made much progress, having practiced his new smile for some time more, finally evening it out. Now was the time to test it. A few Hufflepuff first years were crowded into a corner muttering to each other about the lastest assignment. History of Magic, if he's not wrong. He never is.
Tom walks past them, makes sure to stare at them long enough for them to notice and lock eyes with him, and he smiles. Their eyes widen and one student even takes a step back in shock. Tom sees one grasp his wand discreetly. He frowns. What went wrong? Perhaps his smile wasn't friendly enough. Yes. That must be it.
Later on that week, again in front of the mirror, Tom speculates as he stares at the curved lips of his smile in the mirror. Maybe what he needed was to add some teeth. Slowly, Tom curves his lips upwards again and this time parts them slightly to reveal a flash of stark white. Yes, this is definitely better. This will be perfect.
The next time he is in Charms class. Professor Flitwick is a young professor with some goblin blood in him, likely. He stands a top of a stack of books to teach and is in the perfect line of sight for him. The next time the professor's eyes lock with his, Tom smiles, this time showing a full row of teeth. Flitwick pauses, looks slightly disoriented, and turns away slightly.
Tom pouts inwardly. Not outwardly, because budding dark lords do not pout in front of others. He didn't get a smile back, but this was definitely better than the previous attempt. He turns to the Ravenclaw Girl sitting in the seat opposite to his and gives her a pristine smile. She blanches and looks away quickly, her hands shaking slightly as she hides her face behind her book.
He is taken aback. After Flitwick, he thought his smile would have been received better. No matter. Tom Riddle wasn't the kind to give up. He packs his things at the end of the class and heads to his room to practice some more. One or two of his classmates stop him along the way to ask him if he were joining them for dinner in the Great Hall but Tom declines curtly. Living in the orphanage for most of his life has left him with a meager appetite.
He spends another couple hours practicing his smile. This time, he's decided to add the typical crows feet at the corner of each eye. Apparently, its one of the things that signify a genuine smile. Tom has no idea what wrinkles have to do with being genuine, but he decides that the others around him are irrational beings either way, so something like this does make sense in an odd sort of way.
The next time has Tom sitting in the common room along with the other Slytherins. He is situated in the corner, by one of the small tables by the bookshelves. The Slytherin's are incredibly quiet today and Tom feels that he must show a sign of approval. He smiles, making sure this time to add the crinkles at the corner of his eyes.
They cringe and look away. A couple stumble up to run and one even falls from his chair in fear.
Tom scowls. This is useless. He's already spent hours enough on this and it seems like he's just making issues worse rather than better. He resolves to stop wasting time on this futile endeavor and continue forward with his original plans. World Domination will soon be not so far out of his reach. So he puts these silly thoughts out of his mind and directs his thoughts towards his larger goal.
It isn't until his first official Death Eater meeting years later that Tom realizes the perfect use for his smile. He has already decided that the main motivator for his subjects and for the world will be fear. Fear of him and his power. Fear of torture. Of Death. One of his subjects has failed him miserably and Tom retaliates by casting the Cruciatus curse on him. It's the first time he's had to use this spell in a Death Eater meeting and it does feel incredible. The unforgivable have always given him a rush of power incomparable to anything else. He smiles.
And his minions cringe and cower like every other time he had ever used his smile so many years ago and it strikes him then. The perfect use for his smile. To spread fear. His minions cringe because they know he enjoys pain. That he savors the screams of others and that he can be as punishing as he is rewarding.
That is when Tom realizes he has gone about it all wrong. Smiles are typically used to show contentment, satisfaction, happiness, and he is all three of these things only when he has someone to torture. He'd been trying all those years ago to smile when he wasn't happy. Was that the problem? Now he smiles, all sharpened teeth glinting and eyes glowing red, and his minions scream and shudder and stumble back in fear. It makes his smile widen.