Harry kept his head down as his soulmate led him through the long hallways of what seemed to be a large manor. He didn't want to watch as his soulmate hid him away. The other had taken him from Hogwarts. Taken him from what could have become a real home. And now Harry would be confined to this manor as his soulmate hid away his mistake. Or maybe he was going to kill him. He'd already killed Ginny in the Chamber and she was far better than him in every way. What was stopping the man from killing him?
His soulmate came to a stop before a heavy door and Harry peeked up at the other. The man had barely spoken to him since they left the Chamber, giving Harry sharp looks every now and then that made his head hurt whenever they made eye contact. Their eyes met again for a moment before Harry averted his gaze, flinching at the growl his soulmate gave.
"Wait here." Tom slipped into the room, leaving Harry alone in the hallway. The boy shuffled his feet, trying to make himself as small as possible. He wanted to run. Run back to the safety of Hogwarts. He'd nearly fooled himself into thinking he could be happy there.
Lord Voldemort looked up as he felt someone breech his wards. No one should be able to enter his office. No one should even know where his manor was in the first place, let alone enter his office. He drew his wand, ready to kill whoever had dared come to his home only to nearly drop the wand in shock.
Tom Riddle was staring him down and Voldemort couldn't keep the surprise off of his face if he tried. Then Riddle slammed his diary onto the desk and Voldemort nearly gasped. His horcrux had come back to him.
Riddle sneered, moving closer to the Dark Lord. He gently rolled up his sleeves, watching as Voldemort sent a curious glance towards his second words and Tom did his best not to cover the words again. He wasn't used to anyone seeing his second words besides a doctor. Even if this was his future self he wasn't comfortable sharing his words with anyone but his soulmate. His soulmate who was afraid of him. Anger washed over Tom again and he glared at his future self.
"Our soulmate is outside of that door. You will be kind to him." His soulmate. His soulmate was here and his horcrux was here and Voldemort was on the verge of losing his mind with how suddenly everything was happening. He would get to meet his soulmate.
"You found them?" He stared at the horcrux in wonder. He'd spent his entire life looking for his soulmate and now he would finally meet them. Riddle nodded in response, fingers dancing over the sobs on his arms. Voldemort looked down at his own arms, hastily peeling back his sleeves and staring in at the words on his arms. They were the same as his horcrux's, the same soft sobs and increasingly heartbreaking apologies that Voldemort had known his entire life.
His second words stood prominently against his pale skin, still too fresh from his resurrection. His words had been slow to appear, this time creeping down his skin day by day until they stayed. He'd only been in this body for a few months after the Potter brat had killed Quirrell. That little bastard had ruined his plans, stopping him from retrieving the sorcerer's stone and regaining his full power. Now he was trapped in this mutated body because of that useless child. Oh, how he hated Potter.
A muffled cry sounded outside of the door and Riddle growled at the Dark Lord.
"What did you think of him?" Voldemort stared at the horcrux in confusion. What was he talking about? Riddle rolled his eyes and strode towards the office door, pulling in a small body. The kid was shaking, small arms wrapped around his middle as he kept his head down. He flinched away from Riddle, shoving a fist into his mouth to stifle a sob. Voldemort stared at the other in surprise. He knew that child. He knew that mess of hair anywhere.
What was Harry Potter doing in his office?
Harry stared down at his bare legs, watching as his words changed rapidly. It was almost like two different people were thinking of him. Sometimes there were words of reassurance and love that confused him more than anything and other times there was the usual deep seated hatred and wishes of death. There was another stream of hate as his soulmate wished death upon him again and that was something Harry was familiar with. However, he frowned at the whisper of love wrapped around his ankle. His soulmate had never thought that of him before. He wondered if his words could be wrong?
Pain laced through Harry's chest and he stifled a sob. What if his words were wrong? What if Voldemort wasn't his soulmate? Voldemort, he knew hated him but the man had been nicer to him than anyone ever. He was honest. He didn't make Harry think he would care about him only to break him later. His soulmate was honest in his hate and Harry appreciated that more than anything. But if his words were wrong then Voldemort would have no reason to deal with him. Even locking him away would be nicer than letting go of Harry completely. The boy could feel panic overwhelming him and sobbed.
Someone was moving him and Harry wrapped his arms around his waist, trying to stop himself from shaking. He lifted his hand to his mouth, stopping his cry before it could leave him. He was crying in front of his soulmate. The man would think him weak and useless and Harry had already proven that he was just a little freak that didn't deserve a soulmate. He shivered, flinching away from the touch of his soulmate. He didn't want the man to pretend to care for him. Feeling that, from his soulmate of all people, might break him. He heard someone shout and curled in on himself as a fight broke out between the two wizards. He didn't want to be in the way.
He was sorry. He was so sorry and his soulmate was mad and he had never meant to anger the man. They didn't need to fight, Harry was useless and fighting over him was pointless. He would be dead soon anyway.