I Open at the Close

Inside the fish tank were three fish. One was black but looked vaguely green due to the way the light reflected off of it. One was blue and silver with the colors blending together at points. One was a rainbow of colors with red featuring most prominently.

That last fish was 5-year-old Tom's favorite, and it upset him to find it lying at the bottom of the tank one morning, lifeless. He wished for it to live again, and the magic he didn't know he had fulfilled his wish. That afternoon he saw the rainbow-colored fish swimming as if it had never died, which brought a smile to his face. This was the first time he ever brought something back from death.

That night the black fish that looked green at times was lying dead at the bottom of the tank. Tom didn't bother trying to will it back to life.


Tom was not born evil, and he was not a bad child by any means. He wasn't normal, but it couldn't be helped. From a very young age he was precocious and had the uncanny ability to tell when someone was lying to him. He also was magically gifted though it took a while for that to become clear to him.

Being able to tell when someone was lying was very useful but had some downsides. The primary downside was that Tom found himself uninterested in befriending others because of people's tendency to lie. He hated liars more than anything. He, personally, had no reason to lie, so he didn't understand why others bothered to. It infuriated him whenever someone would accuse him of lying. He also knew he was smarter than other kids his age and was certain that he was special, so he didn't see any incentive to befriend anyone.

When Tom was 5 years old, he was adopted for the first time. A financially well-off couple with fertility issues wanted a child, and they decided to adopt Tom. The boy enjoyed the luxury the couple was able to provide as well as their pet fish, but he could tell the couple and people the couple brought over to the house for networking and socializing lied a lot. He was at a stage where he tended to blurt out whatever he was thinking, which meant that he called people liars a lot.

The couple found Tom's tendency to call them liars both unsettling and irritating. It was unsettling because he always called them liars after they'd lied, and it was irritating because it was disrespectful. It was after Tom called several important people at a dinner party they were hosting liars that the couple returned the boy to the orphanage.

When Tom was 6 years old, he was adopted for the second time. A couple who had a son of their own already wanted to have another child but didn't want to raise one from infancy, and they decided to adopt Tom. The couple's 8-year-old son bullied Tom because he was jealous as a result of the attention his parents normally gave to him being split. When Tom told the parents about how their son was treating him, the couple's solution to the problem was to return Tom to the orphanage.

When Tom was 7 years old, Billy's rabbit was found dead at the bottom of the stairs shortly after the two boys had had an argument. Tom had nothing to do with the rabbit's death. One of the younger girls at the orphanage had taken the rabbit to play with, only to trip down the stairs while holding the animal. She sustained minor injuries.

A few hours later, Tom went outside the orphanage to the trash the rabbit had been thrown in with, retrieved the rabbit, and willed the rabbit to come back to life. He was successful and set the rabbit free in a nearby park.

When Tom was 8 years old, he had to write a short story for school. In the process, he came up with a story about a villain named Lord Voldemort, based on an anagram he came up with for his name. Although he used Lord Voldemort as a character for stories and other artistic activities that year, that was as far as his use of the name went. He did not view himself as Lord Voldemort, and he never would.

When Tom was 9 years old, he was adopted for the third time. A couple who had adopted a few other children before wanted to adopt another child, and they decided to adopt Tom. One night the man came into Tom's room and attempted to molest him.

The man's attempt failed because Tom was able to summon a chair from the desk in the room and have it crash hard into the man. It knocked the man from the bed to the floor, and the man sustained minor injuries. The man did not attempt to assault Tom again, but the very next morning, the man returned Tom to the orphanage with his wife in tow.

The man told the matron of the orphanage that he'd seen Tom perform magic and that they should perform an exorcism on the boy. Tom's response to that was that the man was simply angry that he had defended himself when the man had tried to touch him inappropriately the night before. Mrs. Cole's response to all of this was to notify the police to let them conduct an investigation.

Some time went by between when Tom was returned to the orphanage and the investigation concluded. In the end, it turned out that the man had been abusing several adopted children over the years, and the man went to prison while the children were brought to the orphanage.

When Tom was 10 years old, after the orphanage took a field trip to the seashore, Dennis and Amy came back strange. Tom didn't do anything to the two children; they were just in shock. The two had followed Tom to a cave without his knowledge and witnessed him bringing a dead snake back to life and talking to it.


15 July 1938

Albus looked at the drab, grey building that housed the student he was here to inform about Hogwarts and the rest of the wizarding world and frowned while thinking about the name of the boy: Tom Marvolo Riddle. There was something familiar about the name, but perhaps that was simply because "Marvolo" was definitely a wizard's name. It didn't have a muggle vibe to it. The other parts of the boy's name could go either way, muggle or wizard.

Albus walked up to the front door of the orphanage and knocked. A little girl answered the door and squinted her eyes in suspicion at him. "What do you want?" the girl asked.

"Anne, get away from the door. How many times have I told you not to answer the door?" said a woman standing a few feet away. The girl rolled her eyes but moved away from the door. She was replaced by the woman, who smiled tensely at Albus. "I'm sorry about her. Now, may I ask who you are?"

Albus smiled politely at the woman. "My name is Albus Dumbledore. I'm a teacher at a special boarding school that one of the children who I've been informed lives here was enrolled in by his mother before she passed away. She herself attended the school when she was younger, so she wanted her son to attend as well." Albus didn't know at this point that Tom's mother actually had attended Hogwarts, but he didn't see any harm with lying to the muggle woman.

A look of surprise flashed across the woman's face. "Really? Well, why don't you come inside and join me in my office, Mr. Dumbledore. I'm sure we have much to discuss."

"It would be my pleasure, Miss..."

"Mrs. Cole," the woman answered.

Albus nodded and followed Mrs. Cole to her office. He took a seat in one of the chairs across from where Mrs. Cole sat behind her desk.

"So, which child here is supposed to go to this school you mentioned at the door?"

"A boy by the name of Tom Marvolo Riddle."

A thoughtful expression crossed Mrs. Cole's face. "Him? Hm... Well, I suppose if any of these children would be suited for a special boarding school, it would be him."

"I get the feeling there is a story there."

"Oh, yes," Mrs. Cole smiled. "He's very smart, always at the top of his class. He is a bit odd, however."

"Odd?"

"Well, he doesn't really have any friends and never has. He seems to prefer books over people. The staff and I have tried to get him to befriend the other children, but he just has no interest in them. He says they're too dull or stupid or liars. He always has some reason for not wanting to interact with the other children. He's usually quiet, except when he's angry. He was unusually quiet as a baby too, I remember. He is generally polite though distant with people."

"So, he's precocious and shy? That's not that unusual."

"Well, I'm not so sure it's just that, and I wouldn't say he's shy exactly either. I think he dislikes people more than anything. I can't really blame him for that though. You see, he's been adopted and returned a few times. The first time, he accused a bunch of people of being liars, and the couple who'd adopted him were embarrassed by that, so they returned him. The second time, the couple had a son who bullied him, and instead of disciplining their child, they decided to return Tom. The third and most recent time, the couple returned Tom, claiming he could do magic and needed an exorcism-"

"-What sort of magic did they say he could do?"

"Oh, the man claimed Tom was able to move objects with his mind. He claimed Tom made a chair fly from across the room and hit him. It sounded like nonsense to me. Besides, the man made it sound as though Tom did this for no reason. I find it hard to believe that Tom performed some sort of magic and for no reason. Sure enough, Tom claimed the man was just mad that he'd defended himself against the man. The man had attempted to assault him, you see. I called the police to have them investigate, and it turned out the man had assaulted quite a few children he'd adopted with his wife over the years. The man is in prison at the moment."

"And has Mr. Riddle done anything else strange like supposedly making objects fly with his mind?"

Mrs. Cole gave Albus a shrewd look. "Supposedly, yes. Once Tom got into an argument with one of the boys here, and the boy had a pet rabbit. The rabbit was found dead at the bottom of the stairs shortly after, and the boy accused Tom of having killed it. That wasn't the case though. One of the girls here had taken the rabbit to play with and tripped on the stairs. She was injured, and the rabbit died in the process. The boy claimed that later that day he saw Tom go to the trash the rabbit had been thrown in with, retrieve the rabbit, and bring it back to life before letting it go free. I think he was just upset about his pet having died and that he was having difficulty accepting what happened.

"There was also this other instance just last year when the staff took the children to the seashore. Two of the children followed Tom to a cave, and they claimed they had seen him bring a dead snake back to life and start talking to it. It's not that strange for children to attempt to talk to animals, and Tom is fond of snakes, so it doesn't seem that strange to me that he would try to talk the snake into living again. Those two children I know didn't like Tom to begin with, and they are afraid of snakes like most people. It's not surprising that they'd make up this story.

"Anyway, that's enough talk about stories children made up. Why don't you tell me about this school Tom has been admitted to?"

"Ah, yes. The school is for gifted children, and like you mentioned, Mr. Riddle is a gifted child. His mother attended it herself when she was young, and she set things up so that any child of hers would be able to attend the school once they became old enough to attend. She was quite confident any child of hers would be suited for the school. It is a boarding school, so he would be staying at the school during the school year. He would have the option of staying at the school or returning here during the winter holidays, but he would have to return here for the summer in between school years. As for his school supplies and school uniform, the costs would be covered by the school. There is a fund for orphans so that they can attend so long as they are suitable for the school."

"That seems very convenient. What is the name of this school again? I seem to have forgotten it."

"Hogwarts."

"Hogwarts? I've never heard of it before." Mrs. Cole frowned. "Do you have any sort of documentation proving the existence of this school and Tom's enrollment?"

"Of course." Albus handed Mrs. Cole a blank piece of parchment and cast a Confundus charm on her before she could even mention the parchment was blank. Mrs. Cole shivered as the spell began to take effect, and then she felt as though she had been given all the information she needed even though she'd been given no information at all.

"Do you have any more questions, Mrs. Cole?" asked Albus. He knew she wouldn't have any.

"No, I think I have all the information I need."

"Wonderful. Now, would you mind taking me to Mr. Riddle?"

Mrs. Cole proceeded to take Albus to Tom's room and introduced the two briefly before leaving them alone.

"So, you're a teacher," Tom stated rather than asked from where he was sitting on his bed. "What do you teach?"

"I'm the Transfiguration professor at Hogwarts School of Witchcraft and Wizardry," Albus answered from where he stood.

Tom frowned. "I've never heard of transfiguration or Hogwarts. You say it's a school for... 'witchcraft and wizardry'? I'm a wizard?"

"Yes."

Tom nodded.

"You don't seem very surprised to hear this." In Albus's experience, muggleborn children were usually surprised to learn they were a witch or wizard.

"Of course not. I always knew I was special and different from the others."

"How so?"

"Besides being smarter than them, I can make objects move without touching them, I can tell when people are lying to me even if they're really good liars, I can talk to snakes, and I can bring dead animals back to life." Tom said all of this with simple confidence. It was like Mrs. Cole had said: The boy wasn't exactly shy.

Albus considered what Mrs. Cole had said and what Tom was saying.

Being smarter than other children was slightly unusual but not in a magical sort of way. There were always people who were smarter than others.

Being able to move objects without touching them was fairly common as far as accidental magic went although Albus suspected Tom didn't only move objects with his mind under duress. If Tom could perform intentional wandless magic, it showed a great deal of power and control for a young wizard. It suggested the boy had a lot of potential.

Being able to tell when people lied the way Tom appeared to be able to suggested he was a natural Legilimens. While legilimency was something a wizard could learn, to be a natural Legilimens meant that Tom inherited it from his mother or father's family. There weren't very many families that had this natural ability.

Being able to talk to snakes meant that Tom was a Parselmouth, and being a Parselmouth was something that was only passed down by blood as far as Albus was aware. The number of families that contained Parselmouths was much smaller than those that contained natural Legilimens.

Being able to bring dead animals back to life the way Tom was able to meant that Tom was a natural necromancer. Usually necromancy was practiced by dark wizards who were deeply entrenched in the dark arts. To be a child with no knowledge of magic yet still be capable of such magic indicated that Tom not only inherited the ability through his mother or father's family but that he was, in fact, powerful and had strong control over his magic.

Based on what Mrs. Cole had said earlier, it seemed likely that Tom had done the very magic she had dismissed. The most interesting thing was that it didn't seem as though Tom had any desire to use his abilities to cause harm to anyone. Legilimency could be used for nefarious purposes, and Parseltongue and necromancy were both associated with dark magic, even if they were inherited abilities.

Although Albus knew it was unlikely he'd be able to do so, he became determined to keep Tom away from the dark. The first step would be to attempt to sway him against going into Slytherin. The Sorting Hat would want to place him there due to the boy's Parseltongue ability if nothing else, but perhaps, if the boy was determined enough to not be placed there, the hat would sort him elsewhere. If Tom was sorted into Slytherin, it would be all the more difficult to keep him away from the dark as the House was filled with students from families that practiced dark magic, more so than any other House.

Perhaps Tom could fit into Ravenclaw. According to Mrs. Cole, he was very independent, he liked books more than people, he was intelligent, and he was at the top of his class academically. Although it wasn't necessary to be that way to fit in Ravenclaw and one could be that way and end up in another House, Albus didn't get the impression that Tom was suited for Gryffindor or Hufflepuff.

"Sir?" Tom asked after a stretch of time passed. Albus had been quietly thinking for too long for it to go unnoticed.

"I'm sorry, my boy. I got lost in my thoughts. It happens sometimes."

Tom had a feeling there was more that could be said, but he had no reason to pry more. However, that didn't mean he didn't have any questions. "How common would you say my abilities are among wizards?" Tom had no way of knowing if what he could do was common or uncommon. He hoped that what he could do was uncommon. To go from knowing he was special to learning he was only special compared to people who weren't wizards would put a dent in his pride.

Grudgingly, Albus answered, "While your ability to move objects without touching them or casting any spells on them isn't all that uncommon, those other abilities you mentioned aren't too common. It would be for the best if you don't tell others about those abilities. While you likely inherited those abilities from one or both of your parents, they tend to be associated with dark magic. Such magic is usually done by wizards who mean to cause harm to others, so it would, in the least, make your peers at Hogwarts feel uncomfortable if they knew you had these abilities, regardless of your own intentions."

"I understand." Tom could see the logic in what Professor Dumbledore was saying. While he doubted the man was revealing all of his reasons for why Tom shouldn't mention his abilities to others, the idea that it could alienate him from his peers and potentially cause them to become hostile towards him - although it went unsaid, it was implied - was a good enough reason in itself. At least he had his answer though: He was, in fact, special, even among wizards.

Tom also had a new piece of information: He got his abilities from one or both of his parents. He might have suspected that he had gotten his abilities from them, but the professor had all but confirmed it. That train of thought led Tom to another question. "Sir, do you think my mother was a witch? I was told she died shortly after she gave birth to me. Surely a witch wouldn't have died from childbirth though, right?"

"Unfortunately, witches, just like muggle women, can die from childbirth although the instances are more rare. I cannot say one way or another whether your mother was or was not a witch."

Now Tom knew what non-wizards were called, not that it mattered much. At least he knew now there was a chance that some of his abilities came from his mother. She literally gave her life for him. While it was unlikely to have been a willing sacrifice, Tom could appreciate the sacrifice nonetheless. He was uncertain how to feel about his father though. Had the man abandoned his mother, or had the man died before Tom was born? Either was possible. "Do you think my father was or is a wizard? Mrs. Cole said my mother had come here alone and didn't say anything about my father, so I'm not sure if he's alive or not."

"I'm afraid I cannot answer that either, my boy. What I can say though is that I'm not familiar with any wizard named Riddle other than yourself, but Marvolo does sound like a wizard's name to me. It's possible that your mother was a witch and your father was a muggle although there are other possibilities."

To Tom, this suggested that his father had abandoned his mother. He probably found out she was a witch and left her. Then again, it was not as though the professor knew every single witch and wizard. He'd have to look into things whenever he got the chance. Now that Tom had gotten answers to his most pressing questions, he was interested in learning more about the school. "So, what's Hogwarts like?"

"Hogwarts is a school young witches and wizards from across Great Britain attend to learn about magic and how to use it. Attendance is tuition-free. It is only the school supplies and uniform that students have to buy. There is a fund for orphans, so you won't need to worry about the cost. You may not be able to get the highest quality items, but you will be able to get what you need. In fact, once we're finished here, we'll head off to get what you need for the upcoming school year.

"At Hogwarts, students are placed into four different Houses more or less based on their personalities and values. For all seven years that you attend Hogwarts, you will live among, dine with, and attend classes with people from your House. Ideally, you get placed with likeminded people who you can develop friendships with or at least are able to get along with.

"The Houses are Gryffindor, Hufflepuff, Ravenclaw, and Slytherin, named after the founders of Hogwarts. Each House represents traits that each founder valued. You will be able to learn more from the ceremony on the night you arrive. Personally, I think you could do well in Ravenclaw. Ravenclaws, in particular, value learning, intelligence, originality, and independence.

"Each year, you will have a set of core classes you will take along with others from your year. You'll be able to choose electives when you get further into your education.

"Oh, I almost forgot. While you will be living at Hogwarts during the school year, you will have the option to come back here during the winter holidays and will have to return here each summer. Is there anything else you need to know at the moment?"

Tom thought for a moment before answering. "No. I think that's all for now."

"In that case, are you ready to go get your school items?"

"Yes."

Albus nodded. "You will always find what you need for the school year at Diagon Alley. The way we'll be travelling there today is by apparating. In the future, you will want to go to the Leaky Cauldron to gain entrance to Diagon Alley. I'll show you where that is later on. If you're ready then, please grab hold of my arm and make sure to keep a tight grip."

Tom got up from where he'd been sitting on his bed and took hold of the professor's arm before they were transported from his dull, grey room into the bright, colorful Diagon Alley. He felt dizzy for a moment before it passed.

The boy and the professor went to all of the normal shops to get Tom's school supplies. There were no shops selling used items in Diagon Alley. When the professor had said Tom wouldn't be able to get the "highest quality items," he hadn't meant that Tom would be forced to have items other people had previously owned. Wizards didn't even have such a concept outside of passing down items within families.

No, what the professor had meant was that Tom wouldn't be able to get fancy versions of items, like getting a trunk that could act as a house on the go or getting a cauldron made of gold. However, he also couldn't get a pet, even if it was fairly common to get one. It didn't bother Tom though since he was used to not having a pet. Already not having to have secondhand items was good enough; it was more than he could say about living at the orphanage.

It was after getting the rest of Tom's items for Hogwarts that the two went to Ollivanders to get Tom a wand. Mr. Ollivander took a few measurements and stared at Tom for a bit before he started fetching wands for the boy to try. After several wands failed to work or actively had negative reactions to Tom, Mr. Ollivander squinted his eyes at Tom and muttered, "I wonder," before reaching for the wand that would end up choosing the boy.

"Thirteen and one-half inches. Yew," Mr. Ollivander said as he handed the wand to Tom.

The moment Tom grasped the wand, he felt a pleasant warmth spread through his hand, and gold sparks shot out of the tip of the wand.

"Curious. Very curious," Mr. Ollivander remarked.

"What's curious?" Tom asked.

"Yew wands are quite rare, and those they choose tend to be similarly unusual, Mr. Riddle. They never choose mediocre or timid owners. Your wand is on the longer side, which suggests a strong personality and capability for dramatic forms of magic. Yew wood represents life and death, and the core of your wand is phoenix feather, which represents rebirth or immortality. Coincidentally, the phoenix that gave the feather that is in your wand gave just one other feather, and the owner of said phoenix is none other than Mr. Dumbledore here. Yes, I think we can expect great things from you, Mr. Riddle."

Tom was visibly pleased by what Mr. Ollivander said. Meanwhile, Albus was somewhat surprised although he supposed he shouldn't be when he considered what he knew about the boy already and wandlore. It was interesting that Fawkes, specifically, had provided the feather that was in Tom's wand though.

After paying for Tom's wand, Albus took Tom to the Leaky Cauldron and showed him how he would get inside Diagon Alley in the future. Then he gave Tom written instructions for how to find the Leaky Cauldron from Wool's Orphanage, for Tom would simply be given the necessary funds for school supplies when his list of what he needed for the upcoming school year was delivered in future years and be expected to obtain what he needed on his own. This suited Tom just fine.

Albus and Tom apparated back to Tom's room inside the orphanage with Tom's trunk full of the day's purchases. The professor handed the boy the envelope that contained his Hogwarts admittance letter, unopened, and explained that Tom would need to go to King's Cross on September 1st with his belongings to take the train to Hogwarts, which would leave at 11 a.m. Inside the envelope, along with the admittance letter and list of school supplies, was a ticket for the train, but it was something given to first-year students only as a sort of commemorative item. It wasn't actually needed to board the train.

Albus informed the boy that in order to access the platform, he would need to walk through a brick wall that was between platforms 9 and 10. He didn't need to know any special magic to do this. He just simply had to walk.

Once Albus finished explaining the last of what he needed to, he congratulated Tom on his admittance to Hogwarts and wished him a happy summer for the time that remained. Then, he left Tom's room and sought out Mrs. Cole. He informed her that he would be leaving and that he had already gotten Tom his supplies for the upcoming school year before using the Confundus charm on her once more to prevent her from getting suspicious and leaving.