A/N: I have revamped this chapter completely. Please enjoy and review. :)

Chapter-4

Stunned

Mr. Potter,

Draco Malfoy is with me at the Riddle Manor. Meet me at my manor by 9 P.M. I suppose I do not need to tell you the repercussions of ignoring this letter.

Tom Marvolo Riddle.

Harry's hands were positively trembling by the time he finished the letter. How could Draco have been captured? Draco had not wanted to be marked. He hadn't. Had he been marked Draco forcibly. It was unthinkable.

His head pounded and his knees felt week.

"I don't think he would hurt him. He would have sent some death eater to drag you to his manor otherwise. He wants something from you. We would gain nothing if you do not collect yourself. Your recklessness will kill all of us." Professor Snape's voice relieved him, if only a bit. He was at least able to breathe.

"What should we do now, professor?" He asked after having stood up and professor looked at him "Have a seat and drink some water."

Harry obliged and tried to relax though it seemed impossible.

"I would have asked the reason of your concern for Draco but we do not have time. We are going to leave immediately for the Riddle Manor." Professor spoke, his eyes looking at Harry, as if expecting Harry to refuse. Harry just nodded and answered "When should we leave, sir?"

For just a moment, Harry saw the surprise that Professor Snape's eyes revealed because after that moment, those black eyes were as blank as before.

"Immediately, but you will do as I say. No rushing headlong into battle." Professor spoke sternly and Harry nodded.

This being said, they walked out of the castle. Harry offered his hand to Snape to side apparate him and in the blink of an eye, they were gone.

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"Abraxas. What did you want-"his sleepy voice slurred.

"Ab-" Muffled half words. Long breathes. Tom couldn't breathe. Why was he doing so?

"Abraxas, wait-" Can't breathe. No air. Desperately trying to breathe.

He shoved Abraxas away from and yelled "Abraxas. What the hell is this?"

"I can't lose my inheritance over you-"

His eyes ached but no tears streamed down them...

Tom woke up with a jerk, his heart beating hard and fast. He was breathing hard and deep and looked around to ensure that he was not in that room. This was why he had made his first horcrux. The memories were too much for him and it had been easy since he had already killed his father and grandparents and felt no remorse for ending their life. They should have tried to find him and give him a family. But they hadn't and had turned him into a monster.

It was better to die rather than having nightmare after bloody nightmare. He had not wanted to remember it. Why the hell had he thought of experimenting with a living horcrux?

The memories that were hidden in other horcruxes were even worse. He did not want to integrate with any. He did not want to remember anything.

He was shaken out of his reverie because of a soft knock on the door.

"Yes." He asked and his house elf squeaked fearfully "Your guests have arrived master."

"Very well Twinky. Please take them to the sitting room and serve them tea or coffee as per their preference. Inform Mr. Malfoy about their arrival too." He spoke and the elf stared at him, her eyes wide with shock, before replying, her voice a bit surprised "Okay master. Sh- Should I bring something for you?"

Well, this was certainly new. Twinky, his only house elf had never wanted to be in his presence, leave alone asking if he required something.

He replied politely "Please get me a headache potion."

"Yes Master." The elf said and vanished and Tom was surprised. Politeness was effective then threatening, it seemed. Perhaps that is why his own death eaters wanted to join Dumbledore now.

It was hard being human. With his soul divided into six parts, he was unable to feel any emotion at all but now he can remember his cruelty towards Twinky, his elf. She had been serving him for more than hundred years now and all he had gifted her was with curses and hexes and pain. He couldn't remember when he had felt like this before. This guilt, remorse and pain over the half memories and he did not want to feel this.

Tom crawled out of the bed to get ready. Integration had its benefits too, though. He could watch his reflection in the mirror now. Countless mirrors had been broken ever since his looks had started transforming into monstrous and beastly. He had been astonishingly handsome in his youth.

Now that he remembered, it was even more difficult to bear his own appearance because he wanted his looks back. It would have been better if the horcrux had remained inside Nagini. He won't have felt this- this urge to - to- he didn't know what he wanted but he could surely not allow the other horcruxes to be integrated as well.

Looking for the last time in the mirror, he splashed water on his face. His skin was scaly and his nose was still deformed. His eyes which had been beautiful green once upon a time were a gleaming and poisonous red now. It was unbearable and he did not want to look at himself. Potions, rituals, spells, dark or light magic, nothing could give his natural goods looks back to him.

He got ready and kept his eyes away from the mirror, lest his own ugly face frighten him and ten minutes later found him at the door of his sitting room. Potter had arrived with Severus just like he had anticipated.

He had just taken a step inside and Potter sprung into action. In a mere second, he was standing in front of Tom, his wand pointed towards him threateningly. For the very first time, Tom studied Potter properly. The boy had a fiery passion in his eyes, the passion that Tom had not seen in anyone's eyes but Lily Potter.

"Where is my godson?" It was not Potter who had asked so. The cold voice belonged to Severus Snape. His wand was out and pointed at him as well. Severus Snape was an enigma. Tom had always known that Severus's loyalties did not lie with him he knew that they were not with Albus Dumbledore as well. Severus was a force to be reckoned with and so very very handsome.

Had it been anyone else, Tom would have forced them, under threat of death, to give in to him but this was Severus Snape. Not even Dumbledore knew the real capability and power of Severus. Tom could leglimise him but there was no point. He would see what he was allowed to see and nothing else and if he ever forced Severus to sleep with him, he knew that Severus would extract all his secrets and then give him a merciless death for Severus's eyes were the only thing that Tom could read and they were merciless when they fell on him.

"Stay behind me Potter." He snapped at the boy-who-lived who retorted, "But Draco-"

"Do as I say." Severus barked at him and Potter complied, his eyes cautious and his wand pointed his Tom's direction.

Severus looked glorious like this, his wand pointed at him and his body sparking with unleashed magic.

"So, you are no longer going to put on your double spy act in front of me again, Severus." Tom asked and Severus looked at him with venom in his eyes. If looks could kill, Tom would already be dead. Before Severus could utter another word though, Young Malfoy arrived.

Tom despised Malfoys and he hated this particular Malfoy specifically. Before the integration he had wanted Draco to be his servant because he resembled Abraxas too much. All he had remembered was that Abraxas had betrayed him but now he could remember more things and he could not bear to hurt this boy.

"I am here." Draco murmured blankly as he took in the scene in front of him and Potter spun around, as expected by him.

Severus didn't though. The man kept on looking into Tom's eyes. They were poisonous and mesmerising. They were merciless and still so beautiful. It was shard to feel these things. All this was happening due to the bloody integration and Tom was frustrated, though he kept his face carefully blank and his wand firmly inside his robes.

Tom had never witnessed so much hatred in anyone's eyes till date, not even in Lily Potter's. Her eyes had contained pity when Tom had spoken the curse. Even as the green light had engulfed her life, she had not been angry. She had pitied him and Tom had not had time to ponder over the reason of that pity. He had been reduced to a wandering broken soul, a creature so hideous that he had wanted to end himself.

"You always belonged to Dumbledore." Tom mocked, his eyes boring into Severus's dark and cold ones. He wanted to hear the man's answer. The man's eyes darkened with hatred. Again, if looks could kill, Tom would be dead by now.

Severus narrowed his eyes angrily and said in a very cold voice "I do not belong to anyone and I would kill you in a heartbeat if I could but I know that I can't. I have still not found those hurcruxes of yours."

Silence. Tom stared at Severus who was smirking wickedly now.

"Oh yes, I know about them. I will find them and then I will kill you, slowly and mercilessly. Your death is owed to me. Screw the prophecy. Screw everything else, I will be the one to kill you. You will bleed and I will feed your hideous body to vultures." Severus spoke. His voice was low and melodious and Tom could hear it forever. The words were so frightening that a chill crawled up his spine.

"Why?" Tom asked curiously and Severus spun around at that, barking loudly, "None of your business. My secrets are mine. Dare not take your wand out. I will retrieve my godson and leave."

Tom had just opened his mouth to reply when he heard a yell and turned to find out that Draco had hexed Potter, who was lying on the floor on his butt, looking at Draco with betrayal in his eyes. The betrayal that he had had in his own eyes years ago.

"Draco, what are you doing? Why are you hurting him?" Severus exclaimed, his attention towards Potter and Draco now and Tom stared in surprise. How could a man transform so quickly and immediately. A few seconds ago, Snape was looking as murderous as ever and now he was behaving like a concerned parent, not that Tom would know how parents behave. His have been dead long ago.

Sighing, he moved forward gracefully to help Potter up. Perhaps that would be the sign of peace and would make Severus give him a chance to speak.

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Harry ran towards Draco when he heard the boy's voice and wrapped him in a hug, his voice breaking with relief that he was feeling. He ignored Snape and Voldemort completely in favour of checking that Draco was uninjured. Voldemort had not even taken his wand out and Snape was well qualified to handle this. It did not seem that Voldemort had called him to fight.

"I was so worried Draco. I was so worried. Thank merlin, you are safe." He murmured and was utterly shocked when Draco shoved him away.

He just wrapped him in a tighter hug in response. Perhaps Draco was furious because Harry was late. This time, he hexed Harry so hard that Harry fell on the floor on his butt.

"What the hell is wrong you Potter?" Draco growled, his wand pointed towards him.

"Draco, what are you doing? Why are you hurting him?" Severus's sharp voice reached Harry and someone's hands held his shoulders, urging him to stand. He automatically assumed that it was Snape and obliged, still looking at Draco, who was looking at him with narrowed and suspicious eyes.

"KEEP YOUR FILTHY HANDS AWAY FROM HIM." Severus snarled and with a jerk Harry spun around to come face to face with Voldemort.

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"STOP." Draco shouted and Severus and Potter who had been about to hex the dark lord froze, turning towards him.

"We can talk reasonably. There is no need to fight needlessly. The dark Lord has not hurt me yet. He has been a gracious host." Draco murmured reasonably, his eyes trailing from Potter who was behaving very strangely to Severus whose anger knew no bounds and ending on the Dark Lord, whose wand was still inside his robes.

"That would be preferable because I want to make deal with all of you. I have a favour to ask and in return I will help you." The dark Lord muttered and directed them towards the chairs.

"Let's begun with your clandestine meetings with Draco, Mr. Potter." The dark Lord muttered his eyes on Potter as he spoke.

Draco's expression mirrored his godfathers. His mouth hung open in utter shock because when had he met Potter secretly.

"Or perhaps with someone you think is Draco Malfoy." The dark Lord continued and Potter stood up with a jerk, glaring at the Dark Lord. Draco was stunned speechless. Why would anyone meet Potter as him?

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"You are lying." Harry growled at Voldemort "You are lying and you have done something to Draco, perhaps obliviated him or something. He was so frightened because how could it be possible. It had to be Draco because if it was someone else, then the past couple of months had been a lie and he had not really had anything. He had been living a lie and how was he supposed to go on if it was someone else.

"He hasn't. I have never met you secretly. What reason would I have to do so?" Draco murmured blankly and slowly, realisation dawned on him. This was Malfoy not Draco. Draco had never existed. He had fallen in love with a lie. He wanted to ask who he really was but Harry just felt so numb that he couldn't say anything at all.

"Who was it, if not Draco?" Professor Snape asked in his stead.

Everything seemed clear in Harry's mind now. Initially, the boy he had been dating had seemed like Malfoy but after a couple of weeks, the behaviour had become girlish and Harry had not understood the reason. The perpetrator had acted well. The smirk, the sneer, the raising and rolling of eyes, the crossing of arms had been same and by the time, his mannerisms had begun to change, Harry had already fallen hard for Draco.

"Ginevra Weasley. She was taking a polyjuice potion for the past two months and was meeting you as Draco."

Harry stared at Voldemort and his wand fell from his hands, dropping on the floor. The room was silent and Harry's knees felt week but he would not fall stumble and fall on them. He was not weak and would not embarrass himself anymore.

He turned around a bit and noticed that Dra-Malfoy was as stunned as him by the revelation which meant that at-least it was not intentional on the blonde's part.

"I am-" Voldemort started and Harry glared at him, wishing to be out of this godforsaken place and just be alone. "Oh please, save me this nonsense. You are the last person I want sympathy from. I will not have any of this bullshit anymore and I am leaving. Snape will bring Dra- Malfoy along with him. I am not needed here, as it seems." He asked, his voice breaking and Severus continued blankly, "Yes, let Draco leave and then we can leave as well."

"Potter, look-" Dra-no- Malfoy started and Harry held a hand to stop the blonde, "I have had enough. I am leaving."

He closed his eyes and just apparated, not interested in anything do with Voldemort or Draco Malfoy anymore. Apparently, having a dark lord on his head wasn't enough. Harry's friends just needed to betray him in the worst way possible. Tomorrow, tomorrow he would deal with Ginny. Right now, he just needed to mourn something he had never had and would never have.

In his despair, he did not even to stop to wonder why Voldemort had summoned him in the first place and why he had not been stopped by the bastard when he was apparating. He just ran through the corridors of Hogwarts towards hi dormitory blindly, ignoring the calls and cries of his best friends and dorm mates and closed his curtains firmly.

Finally, when he was alone and could lament over the love he had thought he had had and wanted to have so desperately because, how could he fall out of love now. He was confused and angry and sad. all at once. He lay down and stared at the curtains.

"Mate." Ron called him but Harry ignored him, having decided to tell him tomorrow.

"Harry. Open the curtains." Hermione called and he ignored Hermione as well, closing his eyes as a lone tear escaped and trickled down his cheeks, thereby landing on his neck.

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