Chapter 10: Hogwarts Part 1
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I don't own HP
$ PARSELTOUNGUE $
HP POV
After Tom got his letter, I could see the gradual change in him. The secretive glances he would throw my way and the touching me often even when the situation didn't call for it as if I would disappear if he let go.
I felt the anxiety our upcoming separation would bring too as we had never been apart for an extended amount of time since I adopted him and if I was being true to myself, I was also unhappy that the students at Hogwarts would get to watch Tom grow while I only got him for the holidays. I wanted to be there, always and the thought that some nameless student would get to watch him grow left a bad taste in my mouth as I was a very possessive man and Tom belonged to me and only I was supposed to be there for him.
I knew that when he went to Hogwarts he would recruit minions in the guise that he wanted to be their friend and gradually, he would stop needing me so much. I wasn't keen on that happening.
I had even considered killing the current defense professor so that I could take her place and continue watching Tom but the idea of teaching someone that wasn't Tom did not appeal to me. I would end up being sent to Azkaban for killing them all for stupidity knowing my lack of patience, Not that it could hold me but it would be an annoyance to start a whole new life before even got to really enjoy this one.
In the weeks leading to his departure, my mood worsened and Mort made sure to stay as far away from me as he could as I snapped at him a lot as I couldn't or wouldn't snap at Tom. Mort always looked at me in amusement when I snapped but he was no less annoyed by my behavior. Tom seemed to thrive off my bad mood, taking it as proof of how much he meant to me. He would always touch me during my worse moods and even though I hated to admit it, it helped ease my anger.
The week before he was set to leave for Hogwarts I bought him an owl which Nagini insisted on eating but Tom was able to persuade her to eat the mice he had summoned for her instead. His persuasion skills were unmatched even at such a young age. He would make a great Dark Lord, given he didn't make Hocruxes. I would hate to have to go to another universe and start the process all over again.
He was eager to receive the owl but curious as to why I would purchase on for him given that I had already showed him a way to send messages to me through the shadows as they were more efficient and private.
I assured him that it was for him to communicate with the friends during the holidays like the Malfoy heir who I had noticed he had received a letter from and I wanted him to be able to reply without any problems. He accepted my answer and he went back to what he was doing and I left him to it.
I knew what he was planning on doing to Abraxas and I must say that I approved. It was a strategy I would use, using a person's emotions against them and yet being able to manipulate them enough that they feel in control and being ones using you. It was ingenious of him but I didn't expect any less.
On the first of September, Tom woke up early and I was roped into waking up early with him. He was practically vibrating with excitement. Mort was there for breakfast and even though I knew that they only got along for my sake, I also knew Mort enough to know that he had grown quite fond of Tom so I could understand why he was there as he didn't need any sustenance to live. When I invited him to the train station with us, he was quick to reject the offer. He had his pride after all.
The train station was packed with children young and old with their parents there to see them off. Some of the parents had the audacity to gawk at me and Tom. I knew we made quite the picture, a young handsome man with a similarly beautiful or as some would say adorable pre-teen but they could at least have the decency to pretend that they were not watching us so closely. I heard some 'Aww' from some of the women and I felt Tom's hand tighten in my own, the annoyance clear in his gesture.
We almost crashed into a family of redheads while walking towards the train and I could vaguely recall a family of redheads I had close to during my time as Harry Potter. The Weasleys if I recall correctly, these must be their ancestors or close relatives.
Tom boarded the train with no further delay and I saw him take a seat in the Slytherin part of the train with Abraxas joining him soon after. I had not noticed the Malfoys at the train station and they were quite hard to miss with their blond hair and as if called by my thoughts, I saw Malfoy senior on the other end of the platform standing close to a beautiful woman who I assumed to be his wife. Malfoys were known for wanting the best in life after all and were willing to go to many lengths to get them.
I inclined my head as a sign of acknowledgment when he saw me looking and turned around and walked towards the platform to leave. I had something to do in muggle London and why not stretch my legs while at it?
All the way to my destination, I could not help but wonder. How would Tom handle Hogwarts and the prejudice that came with being a Half-Blood, especially in the house of snakes?
I was confident that he would survive there but would he thrive? And if so, what would be the actions that led to that? Would he reveal that he was the heir of Slytherin or would he hold that off 'till he had their respect academically? I didn't know and not for the first time, I wondered why I didn't just kill the current professor to take her place.
During my walk, I could feel Mort close by, seems like he couldn't help but see Tom off after all. I appreciated his closeness and presence as it reminded me that I was not alone. I had him with me, forever but I couldn't help but wonder. Would Tom always be there? And if so, did I want him to be there with me like Mort or as something more? I still had a lot of time to answer those questions, he was only eleven after all but given that I was timeless and existed in many universes, time seemed to pass by me and soon enough, Tom would become older and I would be left with unresolved feelings and questions.
'I was getting too old to deal with this' I thought morosely walking into the obscured building I was here for to and walking towards the man I was here to meet.
Maybe he could help he stave off the boredom that was sure to come before Yuletide when Tom would be coming home.
'One can only hope' I thought to myself sitting beside him.