Harry woke as a scream nearly parted from his lips, sweat drenching his forehead from the terror. Nightmares, he knew nothing about. His past was a blank with only knowing that his mother and father had been murdered by a dark wizard, the same wizard to kidnap him to the graveyard where he suffered under Crucio. A spell that he was currently suffering the aftereffects of. And had somehow gained two scars, one on his right hand and the lightning shaped cut on his forehead. Harry slowly rose out of bed as his body slightly shook while he made his way out of the fifth year dorms and out in the hallways from the Gryffindor Common room. Predictably the first person he ran into was the Slytherin prefect, Tom Marvolo Riddle.
"Potter," Tom greeted the boy curtly, looking down at him. "What are you doing out of bed?" Just barely a flash of concern flickered through the mostly stone-hearted boy's eyes before it was masked with blankness
Harry had been lost in thought when he heard the older Slytherin and suppressed a slight flinch as his last name was said. There was a flash of a memory of someone yelling his last name and an image of a cupboard padlocked before it vanished. He didn't know what to make of any of it. Though nothing stopped his shaking form as he hesitantly looked up at the Slytherin's cold grayish-blue eyes as he left the question unanswered from the prefect in front of him.
"Harry, I asked you a question." Tom muttered harshly, half-heartedly glaring down at the boy. He took notice of the sweat dripping down him and sighed. "Have you gone and got yourself sick?" Tom grabbed his arm, his grip contradicting the harsh tone of his voice as he gently pulled Harry towards the infirmary. Harry blinked several times trying to remember what he had been asked where his mind came up with nothing. Though he didn't know what to think when Tom grabbed his arm, as his first impression was to struggle out of the man's grip. Even though his memories couldn't tell him why, the fight in him left as he let the Slytherin drag him to wherever he as heading. Tom pulled him into the infirmary, leading him over to one of the empty beds. "Sit there," Tom pointed to the bed, "the nurse stepped out to help a few students who kept throwing up slugs, she'll be back."
Harry squirmed under the prefect's intense stare as if he could read his mind before he glanced away as he sat in the bed. His eyes briefly closed as his memory brought up the nightmare he had not even an hour ago. Yet it was all it took for the young Gryffindor to let out a scream as he fell off the comfy bed and rested his back against the frame. Limbs returning to their original shaking state from the effects of the Cruciatus curse renewed.
"Harry?!" Tom reached out to touch Harry's shoulder softly, his eyes travelling along the younger one's face. The fifth year Gryffindor had his teeth and eyes clenched shut as if trying to ride away the pain to make it more bearable. The memory didn't resurface but the fifteen year old knew it would later if not tomorrow night if it wasn't the one about his parents murder. His breath was heavy as if he been running from death itself, which was a pretty close relation to the truth. But nothing could stop the shaking in his body at the moment. Tom gulped softly as he looked around at the other students temporarily housed in the room, thankfully they were all knocked out due to their different illness. "Harry, Harry, it's okay, you're okay..." Tom fumbled awkwardly as he tried to do this foreign action to him, which was comforting someone. He reached out and gave Harry a brief, stiff one-armed hug as he flushed a bit red as he did so. Harry unconsciously leaned into the older prefect, unaware that his breath had slowed down considerably. Though it didn't take the pain in his limbs away, the shaking eased up slightly as he tried to control his body from the momentarily relapse he had. His eyes flickered open as he muttered a quiet thank you though he was far from sleep. The pain kept him somewhat aware and more manageable with his eyes closed. "I'm okay. I'm okay." Harry mutters as if he's trying to convince himself.
"Maybe you should just relax... okay?" Tom murmured softly rubbing Harry's arm. He couldn't help himself as he felt a small shard of protectiveness pierce through the cold, rough exterior of his heart. Harry felt a slight tingle in his arm from the touch as his energy felt drained from his body. He wasn't sure what the older Slytherin meant by relaxing. But for once he felt like he could be safe which confused him all the more.
"Would you like some tea?" Tom whispered to the boy, looking down at him with a concealed twitch of a smile that most would take as a scowl. The Gryffindor's eyes slowly opened as his looked at the prefect. He almost had nodded his head before it exploded in pain. An image appeared in his mind of a woman in pink as she slowly shirred a cup of tea with an evil smirk on her toad face. The fifteen year old clutched his head as a whimper fell out before the last image was a quill on a desk faded from his mind.
Tom hugged Harry again, a little less awkwardly this time as he kept rubbing his arm in an effort to comfort the boy. "Or not... Would you like anything else then? Some sweets or something?"
Harry's voice sounded hoarse even to him as the tension eased from his body. "Sorry," he muttered loud enough to be heard. "I'd like that." As if prompted by something that his mind provided no evidence for, "You don't happen to have Butterbeer, do you?" Tom quickly made a mug of the famous drink that students loved so much. Appearing on the bedside table, handing it to eh younger boy without a word. Harry took the mug without question and brought it to his lips as warmth spread throughout. Though his grip had slackened, he managed to hold on to the drink before it slipped. Though Harry had briefly got to know the Prefect, the last thing he wanted was to anger the boy. Wincing as the crash was made as his left hand twitched from the scarred but legible words engraved harshly as if in reminder. Tom chuckled softly at the young boy's little accident, waving his wand to a nonverbal spell to clean up Harry. "Careful, you don't wan to get all covered in Butterbeer, do you now?" Tom shared his barely legible smile as before.
Harry flushed under Tom's gaze and was caught off guard as he caught the quirk of his lips. Not quite a smile but better than the usual cruel scowl or glare. But he still muttered a quiet sorry as he finished the drink that been summoned specifically.
"No need," Tom smiled a bit more as he sat down at the edge of the bed. "Anything else you might need?" Harry looked up at the prefect in complete shock from the floor, he had never know anyone to ask if he needed something. Just there, as the isolated Gryffindor. It was a weird concept but found he liked it and briefly wondered if he would actually get a sincere smile from the man that sat above him.
"Well?" Tom prompted Harry and giving him a slight tilt of his head.
Harry blinked several times before he tried moving his foot to find it anchored to the floor. Harry began to feel nervous before he tried to move his legs to see it had the same effect. Almost at the verge of freaking out before remembering Tom had asked if he needed anything which he thought this would be guaranteed for. "I can't move,' the young boy whispered.
"Well... Would you like for me to carry you somewhere? Or would you just wnat to stay in here?" The Prefect asked Harry kindly as his smile grew a tad wider. Harry almost blurted out, 'Why would you do that,' before he regained control of his tongue. The Gryffindor had no desire to return to Gryffindor tower. Yet he still blushed at the image of being carried by the Slytherin. "Can I stay here?"
"if that's what you prefer," Tom said as he made the now empty mug vanish. "Would you like anything else?"
The floor was starting to get uncomfortable as was the strain on his back from leaning it against the post of the bed for so long. "I don't want to go back to Gryffindor Tower but I can't get back on the bed either." Though Harry didn't say anything about being hungry, his stomach answered for him. Tom chuckled and helped Harry onto the bed, well more like picked him up and placed him on the bed before making a sandwich and some chips appear next to Harry. "There you go," Tom smiled.
Harry deeply flushed when he was picked up like a helpless child. Though thankful he was able to move his hands and arms unlike his lower body. He wasn't sure if he could face the embarrassment to be hand fed cause he wasn't able to move. Though the feeling faded as he caught the smile Tom aimed his way as a blush formed once more. Tom felt his heart give a slight flutter when Harry blushed, but pushed it down as he handed Harry the plate with food on it. "Do you think you'll be okay?" Tom asked softly.
Harry gazed at Tom wondering, would he be okay? In truth he wasn't exactly sure. But it was the first time someone asked him that, even without his memories. He slowly took a bit from his sandwich before responding. "I don't know." It was the most honest answer he felt like he could give. Tom nodded, twirling his wand about his fingers. "Well then we'll just have to wait and see, eh?" He smiled at Harry once more, standing up. Harry replicated Tom's smile as he nodded. Yet never realized how hungry he was till he finished the food that the Slytherin had got him. It was like he had not ate in weeks, which had hit him with a wave of confusion.
"Would you like some more before I go?" Tom chuckled, leaning against the bed post as he watched Harry with his now unusually warm eyes. Harry almost blurted out yes before his eye brows furrowed. Was he allowed to ask for more? Where had that thought come from? His eyes blinked a few times before his mouth worked before his mind caught up. "I'm allowed to have more?" was his shy response.
Tom furrowed his eyebrows as well, a concerned downward crook of his mouth appearing at Harry's words. "Of course you are... Why would you not be?"
"I.. I don't know... I feel like there's a memory there. But I just can't remember. I get flashes of some things. But nothing that rings any bells," Harry's words felt weak even to himself. He wasn't sure why he had asked that particular question. He lightly shook his head as an image of a door with five bolts and a cat flap flew in his mind and left just as quickly.
"You're always allowed to have more here, Harry." Tom made another sandwich appear with a slight flick of his wand. Tom's words created slight warmth as he tried to take them by heart. But he just couldn't understand why the concept was so foreign to him. IT made no sense like everything else appear to. What was so bad that he couldn't remember was the Gryffindor's thought as he took a slow bite of the sandwich he was given.
"Great! Now, I'll be off. I have hall that I have to finish monitoring, but if you ever need anything, come to me.. when not that many people are around, okay?" Tom glanced down at his shoes as he whispered the last part, not sure if he wanted to be associated as a Gryffindor's friend or not.
The fifteen year old boy slowly nodded as he let out a yawn. Harry understood behind the Slytherin's reasoning. Even without the memories the feud between the two hours still existed. Maybe not as legendary as in his time because the fact Tom Riddle was sorted in that house. Though a small smile graced Harry's features as he slumped on the soft bed. Due to his legs he couldn't get under the covers and fell asleep immediately. Before Tom walked off, he covered Harry up, making sure he was properly tucked in before returning to his prefect duties before he ran into the young Harry Potter.