Disclaimer: I do not own Harry Potter, nor am I making any profit off of this.
Summary: Could Tom and Merope have come together without the aid of a Love Potion? There have been stranger couples, after all.
WITHOUT THE AID OF A POTION
She didn't think that he noticed her, but he did.
Cecilia was a smart match. The same social status, well-off, pretty, well-connected, and their parents approved. But she had the depth and intelligence of a puddle and aside from a bit of lust, there was nothing really there.
Oh, he played the part in public; called her 'darling', treated her like a princess, went on rides together and didn't openly argue when they disagreed on something, but he didn't feel anything for her, not even real interest.
Interest was reserved for another. Interest and Sympathy.
Rumours ran wild in the village about the Gaunt Family, who lived in a shack, but owned the other half of the valley. How the father was a filthy tramp, how the son was a raving loony, but little was ever said about the daughter, except that she rarely spoke, might be simple-minded, and that her family treated her more as a servant than as a blood relative.
Tom didn't understand it, having been treated with respect and love for all of his life. How could someone hit, degrade or mistreat their own flesh and blood? Family was everything – why else would he be courting Cecilia, if not for family benefit – so why was Merope Gaunt condemned to such a life?
At first, it was only curiosity. Merope always looked so defeated, with bruises in the shape of handprints, her face and clothing streaked with dirt that came from more than general uncleanliness; why didn't she try to do anything? Surely there was a shelter that would take her in, somewhere that would give her employment if she only had a bath and some clean clothing.
Did her family threaten her that Merope did not dare to leave, knowing that those who took her in would suffer too? Did she fear that she had no one and no where to turn, thanks to her family's reputation? Was there another reason, something that explained all the strange happenings near the Gaunt Shack, which made her so resigned to her miserable life?
Curiosity changed to Interest. Why did she always watch him, and then run if she saw him catch her? When Cecilia insulted Merope's home, why did Merope's hurt seem to run deeper than just a cold remark on her house, especially when it was true? Poverty necessitated a lack of flattering clothes, or balms or ointments, but what did Merope really look like under the dirt?
She tried not to watch him, but she did.
Merope had known about him, of course. How often had her father ranted about the 'Filthy Muggles' who owned most of the land in and around Little Hangleton, that she could not know of him?
She had been crying over the lack of a Hogwarts Letter, the lack of an escape from her family, the first time she actually saw him. She was nearly twelve, and he was tall and handsome and rich. A perfect fairytale prince. Were princes not forever rescuing young maidens from Horrible Situations?
Cinderella was treated like a slave by her family, but when the Prince held a ball, Cinderella only had to use a little bit of Transfiguration (not even a very good bit, if it wore off by midnight), and lived Happily Ever After.
Perhaps Merope didn't need Hogwarts. Perhaps Tom Riddle would see her eventually, fall in love with who Merope was beneath the rags, and they could be each other's Happily Ever After.
Circumstances changed as they grew older. Tom was not widely liked, arrogant and snobbish as anyone in his social circle would have to be, but Merope knew that he still cared. Self-Preservation had led her to a lifetime study of judging people's moods, to see when she could get away with subtle disobedience when her father was in a good mood, and when to stay quiet and keep her head down when Morfin was angry.
She was good at reading people, and she knew that Tom was unhappy with Cecilia, and that he still cared about the other people in the village, who had been his childhood playmates.
Merope cared, too. She didn't know much about Tom personally, but she knew that he cared, and she cared, and that the two of them could fall in love, if given the chance.
So she watched. She tried to be discreet, because Morfin would hex Tom, and Marvolo would rage and hit her, and she hid when she thought that Tom might see her, but she still watched.
How could she not?
When they finally met, it was through a simple act of kindness.
Merope had gone walking, to escape the shack and one of her father's moods, but had run afoul of some of the younger villagers. They had pushed her into the dirt, calling her names, just as her father and Morfin always did.
Tom had been riding past on his usual route, which was why she had walked this way in the first place. Cecilia was with him, as usual, but when Tom saw what the villagers were doing, he stopped. Cecilia told him to ignore the 'Tramp's Daughter', that the village boys were just having fun.
Tom had frowned and dismounted, telling Cecilia to go home without him. He had informed the other boys to clear off, before he reported them to the constable, and helped her up. She had smiled at him, and Tom had thought that the joy in her dark eyes and on her chapped lips surpassed the most wonderful Magical Transformation.
His parents would never have let her in the house, but the Head Caretaker, Mr. Frank Bryce, didn't mind them using his kitchen to clean Merope up and make sure that she was all right. He even fixed her a cup of tea and a scone, and Tom visited with her as she thanked him and savoured the good food and tea.
And everything changed...
hp
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A/N: In HBP, we really have only Dumbledore's implications and Harry's guess to say why Tom fell in love with Merope, and I fail to see who a poverty-stricken near-squib with few literacy skills and no magical training could get her hands on the ingredients for a Love Potion, much less make it successfully, and then goes back to never doing any other magic ever again. Besides, we've all seen Harry's skill at deciphering girls' emotions and motivations, so I'm taking it with a pinch of salt.
Anyway, the idea popped into my head and refused to leave until I wrote it down. I might or might not continue, but we'll see.
As always, constructive criticism and reviews are appreciated, but flames are laughed at. Take five seconds out of your time to tell me what you think.
Thanks, Nat