Albania

(1947-1957)

May 15, 1950

It was a sunny Monday morning with a cool breeze flowing through the house. I opened all the windows this morning immediately after I woke up. There had been an unusual frost for the last couple of days, so I was excited to be able to let the fresh air blow out the stale. Tom was already missing from the house by the time I awoke. I assumed he was in his study.

After I began to heat up some leftovers from the night earlier, I heard the door open. Tom shuffled into the house with his hands full of parchment, books, and a few quills. He dumped everything on the table and sat down to began sorting it out. I continued cooking as he perfected the layout of whatever he had on his mind this morning.

Yesterday, instead of our normal routine of practicing spells, Tom had locked himself up in his study. He declared I was free to do whatever I pleased. I mostly lied on the bed and finished reading one of the books he bought me last year, Is Man the Last Ingredient? by Muckroy Puter. It was nice to relax by myself, but I was curious as to what Tom was up to. He had been extra busy ever since William Nott agreed to be his puppet as Minister. Of course, that was only if William got the job.

Tom made it clear from the beginning that it didn't matter to him whether William won or lost. However, I couldn't help but notice how much time Tom poured into William's campaign, ensuring everything was perfect.

For example, this was not the first Sunday he gave me off. After the third Sunday of letting him "do as I please," I began to keep track. So far he had given me ten Sundays off. I even had enough time to go through my memory album and add more entries. Most of the time, however, I just lied around reading books. I felt a little guilty after a few Sundays completely wasted away, but never enough to get me out of bed to do extra work.

On multiple occasions, I grew tired of being lazy. At those times, I would go outside to practice my dueling against the trees. I don't know if Tom ever watched, and I didn't care. I didn't practice for his attention. I practiced because I was determined to see the day when he wouldn't always best me. Endless losing in our dueling had left me almost dreading Sundays.

On the rare occasion when we did have a formal practice, I was ready to see if that day would be the day I would land enough hits to be declared the winner. But so far, I would just have to wait for next Sunday to see if my practice paid off.

I brought Tom his plate of food, but when I searched the table to find a place to set it down, I came up with no solution. Anywhere I laid it would be covering his notes or be on top of a book. After a moment of me standing, debating if I should put the food on the chair next to him, he noticed me.

"Give me that," he said grabbing his plate, "and sit down here." He motioned to the empty chair next to him. I did so, but I couldn't help but think of my plate of food getting cold on kitchen counter. I handed him a fork, and he began to eat.

I let my eyes wander to the parchments and the open book spread out in the middle of the table. Two other large books were stacked in the corner. The open book had Ancient Ruin symbols and special spell shapes that were necessary in more advance magic. I only recognized half of them. On the parchment was Tom's handwriting of notes after notes on the ruins, shapes, and occasionally his own drawings and configurations.

I had become so absorbed in studying the book and the references in his notes that I was startled when I heard Tom's voice. His hands waved above the table as he spoke, "Do you understand any of this?"

I shook my head honestly and pulled my eyes away from the last sentence I was reading to look at him. "I'm interested though. You take such detailed notes." My eyes slipped back down to read again. He made the book's explanation on spell shapes so much clearer. I was fascinated and wanted to continue to read.

"If you want to execute the strongest magic," he began, "you have to perform the spell in the most perfect manner. I've searched every book I could get my hands on to discover the best way to execute any and every spell. With practice and natural ability, I can efficiently get the most out of my magic. But I don't want the most, I want it all. That's why," he paused and took a breath, "I'm going away for a little while."

Tom's words surprised me. He never announced his goings away like this. My face turned to his, and I raised my eyebrows questioningly. "Going away?"

Tom gave a light sigh, "Yes, but not too far away. Maybe Greece. Maybe Russia. I haven't made up my mind right this second, but either one could have what I need."

I realized by his words and manners that I was not invited. "If that is so, what would you have me to do, my lord?"

"I've considered a few things for you," he said casually. "My greatest desire is for you to continue searching for the diadem," I mentally cursed him - that was his greatest desire? "But ... I think I have a better use for you." He paused to look at his plate and began cut up his food.

He was keeping me waiting, wondering what I would be doing. It drove me wild, but I had to sit here patiently. At least I wasn't going to be searching for the forever hidden diadem.

"Now," he said after he finished a few more bites, "is the time that I have been dreading. Nott needs something more substantial in his campaign finances. I already gave him a few galleons, but I want the money to stop coming out of my pocket. I am going to have you, Eva, collect some campaign donations from our fellow Death Eaters." I slowly gained a smile on my face. I was going to have a mission on my own. Tom was gaining trust in me.

Tom continued, "I assume you would stay with Lestrange and his wife. She's something like your friend, right?"

"Yes, Norma is my friend," I confirmed.

"Norma, yes that's the woman. I don't know what he sees in her." His eyes caught mine, and they continued to fall down my body to my legs. They ran back up and stopped at my lap, where my hands were resting. He reached out to grab my right-hand wrist. Tom turned it over to look at my Dark Mark. After a few moments of silent contemplation, he said "I'm going to put some color on it now."

He placed his plate on top of his notes and took his wand out of his robe pocket. With his other hand he gently held my forearm. Although I was not excited about this drastic change in our morning plans, I knew he was going to do it whether I liked it or not. I was not worried - I knew I could handle the pain. I tried to inspire courage by imagining what it would look like with color.

He said the spell very clearly, "Morsmordre Vafo". My skin felt like two flaming needles were sewing into me at the skull's eyes. A few seconds passed by and I watched as the eyes began to glow an emerald green. The needles continued along the snake's scales. They stung slowly along the body of the serpent as it emerged from the skull's mouth. The heat from the tattooed skin never went away and continued to grow. My heart pumped faster as the pain and burning sensation grew.

At last, the needles were making their way to the top of the snakes head By now, the mark was glittering green. The beautiful image distracted my mind from the burning pain, only for a moment though. The next second the pain exploded along all of the newly colored flesh. It was almost too much. I saw the untouched skin around my tattoo getting pink and then red. I had to tightly grab my arm under the mark closest to my shoulder. I had to block the pain.

I wanted to be strong for Tom and not cry out even when the agony became almost unbearable. Tears formed in my eyes, but I refused to let them fall. If he was sending me out on a mission by myself then I needed demonstrate that I can handle myself. I wasn't about to let this tattoo make me appear weak.

I glanced at Tom to see what his reaction was. He continued to stare at my mark like art to be admired. Then his eyes met mine. He judged my face. I was doing my best to keep from wincing, and I watched him reach over to the floor. As it was a packed dirt floor, Tom was able to reach down and grab a small handful of dust and rocks. He pointed his wand to the dirt he held in his hands, and I watched every grain transform into large ice cubes. As he poured the dust out of his hands, they transformed and fell to the pile of ice. The last pebble fell and became a thick towel. He grabbed a handful of ice into the towel, twisted it up, and placed it on my mark.

Instantly the ice removed the pain. A small sigh blew out my moth, and I realized I had been holding my breath. The ice was beyond amazing relief, but I had to rub it along the newly added color to keep the pain at bay. The burning feeling wouldn't subside until hours later, even after I applied cooling spells.

After I had taken the towel in my hand and rubbed it along my colored mark, I gave Tom a smirk. Was he trying to impress me with his transfiguration expertise?

"Thank you my lord. I love it. It's beautiful." He could search me and knew that I spoke the truth. It was painful, yes, but I couldn't deny it's beauty.

We both stared at the newly colored Dark Mark. Tom began to spoke, then stopped before he could finish the first sound. He paused half a second more and began again. "I did read about the possibility of intense burn-like pain, but when I calculated it out, the probability seemed low. But you handled yourself well - good job." He fell silent, and I was happy to know I had done well.

As he continued to examine the green Dark Mark, he spoke softly, almost to himself. "It turned out very good, just what I wanted." He turned my arm back and forth in the light of the morning. It was very striking, and no matter what angle, the green would catch your eye; especially with my red, inflamed skin as backdrop.

He turned his face to look at me, and I caught his eye. He had a very pleased expression. "You are very honored now, Ms. Smith. Everyone will see that I have made you my most trusted servant. Only you will have a colored mark."

"And only I have it on the right arm," I added. He nodded gently in agreement.

"That's right. You have been at my side since … that night in Hogwarts I believe," he recollected. I automatically thought of the Chamber of Secrets, but right away I remembered that he was talking about the first night of my fourth year. I had sworn myself to him then in the Slytherin common room. It was such foolish thing - I was just a child. Yet I felt a smile crawl onto my face. It had turned out for the best. I was closer than ever to winning Tom's heart.

I broke our reminiscent silence. "How long should I be away on this mission?"

Tom leaned back in his chair and stared off into his thoughts. "I'm not sure when I will be back. There are some new books I need to find, and maybe a few wizards to see. Once you finish your job of collections, come back here and search the forest. I don't expect much money, but see what you can get from everyone. If I find myself staying away longer than I first thought, I will write to you."

Tom would write to me? If he ever did, I was sure it would be the first letter I ever got from him. But I needed to think about my upcoming mission. "Just to make certain, I need to meet Lestrange, Rosier, the Selwyn brothers, and Macnair, right?"

"That's correct. Meet the Selwyns at Amani's place. Leave Italy to a foreign location and then travel to London. Dorado and Indus are still wanted for their unapproved early release - it's possible someone could be watching the fireplaces. Once at Lestrange's flat, he should be able to tell you where to find the rest."

I looked into his grey eyes. My hand still held the makeshift ice pack to my arm. "I will do my best, my lord."

Tom leaned forward in his chair. He reached out his hand to stroke my cheek lightly. "I know you will."

I sat down in a bright red couch. The floors were a patterned green laurel. Her oval walnut coffee table in front of us held the tea tray. Norma sat in the couch across from me. It was a dark forest green, in a similar shade of the flooring. Red curtains with white lace trimmed the two windows that shown out into the street. Three walnut corner tables with lamps atop were placed strategically in the room to bring out the most light. The fireplace behind us was also accented with walnut wood and brown tiles. A chair in the corner near the fireplace was brightly decorated with red and pink flowers and greenery on a white background.

"Oh Norma, you've decorated your home so modern and stylish! I'm just entranced," I said after we had sat down to enjoy the tea she prepared. I had arrived by the floo network a quarter of an hour earlier. I went from the Amani's estate in Italy to a town I'd never been before in Portugal. Tom was the one who gave me the directions. From there I traveled to Norma Lestrange's beautiful decorated flat in London.

Norma waved me off but smiled wide. "Oh Eva, why all the flattery? It's just something that comes naturally, I don't even put much effort into it." She kept her smile as if she was waiting for me. However, she barely let a few seconds go by before speaking again.

"The chair was my first purchase. I was out shopping with Druella and my eyes landed upon that flowered chair and said to myself 'Okay Norma, you now have your focus piece. All you need to do is tie it all together.' Later, I found these couches in my uncle's old house, so these didn't even cost me a Knut. As for these tables, Romule gave them to me as a gift. He knows how much I enjoy keeping the house nice."

I gave a friendly laugh, always entertained by her charm. "Well, again, you're home is absolutely lovely."

Norma smiled again at me and took a sip of her tea. "Thank you Eva," she said when she put the cup down on the plate in her other hand. "It's such a pleasant surprise to have you come stay with me. I have been worried about how lonely I was going to be these next few weeks."

"Oh, why is that?" I said as I reached to grab more almond biscuits. They were so delicious.

"Romule is almost done with his residency and is going to meet the MMC at the end of the month. If he does well with them, he will become a full-fledged practicing Healer."

"Congratulations! That will be so exciting. So, after he's met with this committee and earns the Healer title, he won't have to do any more studying?" I recalled from Norma's letters how frustrated she had become with Romule's constant attention to his job. She had complained about this before and after they were married.

Norma looked out the window in contemplation. "I hope not. I have missed him so terribly these past months. He's always cooped up in his study - every evening. Now with these examinations ahead, I see him even less. Maybe just to give him his dinner."

Before I could consider my words, I nodded my head and said, "Oh I completely understand your feelings Norma."

She pulled away from the window. I watched as her sad eyes caught mine and change to a narrow gaze. A small curl of her lip made me feel like a mouse trapped by a cat. "You do?" she purred. "Does Tom do the same thing to you too?"

I realized too late that I shouldn't have said anything about my personal life. In fact, Tom instructed me a couple of months ago that if anyone should ask me about Tom Marvalo Riddle, I should state that I didn't know him - even though we had both appeared at Walburga's party over a year ago. However, Tom assured me that if you deny with enough strength and enough consistency that people will forget what they saw.

I wasn't sure if I could ever convince Norma that I didn't know Tom, but I had to convince her that our relationship was the utmost secret. "Norma, I really can't talk about Tom and myself. Please understand."

"Eva, really! Are you afraid I am going to tell everyone the things you tell me? I keep everything that you and I say between us, and only us. We are confidants! I wouldn't throw away our friendship just to be the first to deal out juicy gossip."

I let out a small sigh and a half-impatient face. "Norma, dear friend, when you put it that way, it makes me worry more."

She laughed, knowing how bad her reputation was and how she didn't do much to change it around. "It's true, oh my, I know. But really Eva, darling, I promise you, your secrets are safe with me." I was unmoved. I wasn't about to spill anything to her. She saw she was losing me.

"Look, the truth is, sweetie, if it was you and any other man, I would spread whatever you gave me as far as it would take me. But - you are not with any other man. You are with Tom Riddle, who turned himself into a madman attempting to start another wizard war. I'm not so stupid that I would make myself a target of a man like that."

She did understand! My eyes lit up, "Norma, then you must work with us and make sure that Tom Riddle is forgotten. Deny him in any of your conversations. Deny even Voldemort. Say you haven't heard a word about him. Both have to vanish, and no connection must be made between the two."

Norma paused to consider what I was commanding her. She took another sip of tea, and then placed the cup and plate on the table in front of us.

"Eva," she began seriously, "you are telling me to keep Tom out of my conversations. I understand, and I can completely comply." She looked at me in the eye with a small hint of incredulousness. "But when you tell me to deny Voldemort and to deny any connection between the two - Eva, I am at a loss. How can you, the embodiment of the connection between Tom and Voldemort, tell me to deny such a thing exists? Once you find an explanation to why you serve both Tom and Voldemort, then I'll hand the solution out to everyone I know."

I wasn't sure what to say. I suddenly felt very foolish. I had been treating her as if she was stupid enough to tell everyone things that should obviously kept secret, while I myself had asked her to solve a problem that I needed to solve first. Of course all our former school associations could easily assume that Voldemort was Tom, but not because of any fault of his. The most obvious thing tying the two of them together was their blond haired servant. The truth that I was the cause of Tom's troubles crashed around me in the silent room. He had been covering his tracks and doing his best to make himself unknown, while I continued to put him under the radar. I saw how truly I was the fool.

I couldn't think of anything else to say, except to go over in my head how I should solve this predicament. Norma let me stay silent, watching me pour over my thoughts again and again, figuring out what I could say or do to perfectly tie away my relationship with Tom and Voldemort.

Norma finished her tea and had a few more bites of sandwich. She looked out the windows watching as the sun was fading into the distance. A clock from the mantle place chimed out that it was a quarter until five in the afternoon.

After Norma allowed enough time to pass, she decided to break the subject away from whatever churned inside of my head. "Eva, did you see Indus's baby today? Please tell me all about him. How big is he? What color is his hair and his eyes? Is he plump or a skinny thing? I'm desperate to find out. I want to go visit them, but Romule thinks it's not safe for me to be anywhere near them. I do hope the Ministry drops their ridiculous inquisition. What does it matter if they left early? They weren't supposed to even be in there in the first place!" She gave a little huff to settle herself back down. "I want to see my little nephew, that's all," she finished with a pout.

My face relaxed as turned my mind to a less painful topic. "He was so small, I really couldn't describe him to you well. Indus said that his wife just had - Peter, was that his name? - well, the baby, a little over a month ago. It was sleeping but he was all wrapped up tight in his blanket. I'm afraid I can't tell you what sort of baby it was, only that it was happy and healthy."

Norma was happy to hear even the vague details I had to give. We continued to discuss her cousins and their current whereabouts. It seemed that Dorado had met Norma not long after we had helped them escape Azkaban. Dorado had informed Norma that they were in the Italian countryside but nothing in addition. I didn't give her any further details other than relaying that the estate was one of the loveliest I had traveled to.

Norma began to inquire about all of the locations I (and, without being mentioned, Tom) had traveled to. I discussed the many different landscapes we adventured across, without giving too much detail about what Tom and I had been doing at those places. Norma, not wanting to be completely left behind in my globe-trotting, began to discuss her and Romule's honeymoon holiday in Paris until the door clicked open.

Romule, wearing his green Healer robes, entered into his home. Norma continued describing the hotel they stayed at, with a view of the Eiffel Tower, while I watched Romule pull out his wand and money bag from his robe pockets and dump them onto the end table next to the door. He walked towards Norma and turned to look at me. "Hello Eva. It's good to see you here, keeping Norma entertained. Please make yourself at home and stay however long you desire."

"Thank you," I said kindly, staying seated as Norma had.

Once he was next to Norma, he whispered to her, "Hello darling. How was your day?" Then he turned her chin up and gave her a quick kiss on the lips. I saw her face put on sad eyes and purse her lips.

"I missed you terribly, my love," she half-whispered back in a childish voice.

Romule dropped his hand from her face and continued walking past her. He passed between Norma and the coffee table to make his way into the kitchen. He said in normal voice while walking, "I missed you too, my love. But now you have Eva to keep you company for a little while."

Norma glanced at me quickly, made a hand gesture and mouthed the words, "One moment," and then stood up to follow him into the kitchen. The door closed behind Norma, and I was all alone. I heard their voices, mostly Norma's, but I couldn't make out what they were discussing. Norma sounded pleading and Romule sounded tired. I felt very out of place, not wanting to be in between their private lives but not sure where to go.

After a few minutes, Romule came out of the kitchen first followed closely by Norma. She had a slight frown on her face, whereas he wore a tired but forcibly pleasant face. "Eva, why don't you come to my study and I will get you what you came for." He turned to Norma who was tailing him closely. "And you, my dear, please get dinner started for us."

Her frown eased on her face and she silently agreed. Norma turned back around to the kitchen.

I got up from the red couch and followed Romule after he grabbed his wand from the front door. He walked down the only hallway in the house. Romule opened the first door on the left, and I followed him in. It was completely dark, with no windows, until he flicked his wand. The candles sparked to life and gave the room a dim glow.

Immediately, I was glad it was not brighter. If I had thought Tom's study was occasionally hit by a tornado, then Romule's study had been in an apocalypse. Not only was every surface and the floor, save for a small passageway to the chair, covered in papers, books, clothes, trash, or some unknown object, but even the walls were lined from floor to ceiling with notes, varying pictures of the human body, and other charts and diagrams. I wondered if Norma ever entered this room. I'm sure she'd turn right around and pretend she didn't see a thing. To know that a human can willing want to live in a room like this was beyond my understanding.

I kept my face still like a mask. Romule squatted down next to his chair and began to search the piles of boxes and papers underneath his desk. He would place the junk he had gone through to another junk pile next to him. He continued in this manner, and at one point almost digging, for the next couple of minutes. Romule would apologize every so often, but I was distracted by the overwhelming amount of clutter that the room could hold. A thump startled me, and I realized one of the piles he had continued to stack upon fell over and slid across the already cluttered floor. But Romule paid no attention. It was like a drop of water into a bucket.

"Here we are," he said in a muffle as his head was still deep under the desk. He held something in his hand as he stood up from his crouch. He dusted himself off a bit and then held his hand out to me. I reached for whatever items he had. In my hands dropped a medium-sized blue bag with yellow drawstrings. "In there is my campaign donation."

He turned back to the top of his desk. As he pushed paper and after paper aside, he said to me, "You'll be wanting Macnair's and Rosier's address. It's on here somewhere, I just wrote it down two days ago. Ah, here it is."

I took the torn off parchment from him with two addresses. "The top is Macnair, the bottom is Rosier."

"Thank you Romule. I'll go see them right now."

Romule raised his eyebrows. "Right now? You don't have to go so soon. Norma had planned a dinner for us."

"Oh, thank you, but I really want to wrap this up quickly. And besides, I'm sure she would enjoy having dinner with just the two of you. I heard you have been very busy lately."

Romule gave a humorless chuckle, knowing that everything going on between him and Norma was blasted across the wizarding grapevine. "Yes, I have. But, as I have explained to her many times, this is only momentarily. After I meet the Magical Medical Committee, my work responsibilities will naturally increase along with my pay, but my time at home will be devoted to her."

I felt even more awkward hearing about their relationship from Romule. Perhaps he told me these things to pass onto Norma, but I wasn't sure. What I did know was that I needed to go and collect from the others while the desire was still burning. My plan was on making my rounds tonight, and then in the morning I'd spend all day with Norma. We might even go shopping.

I nodded to Romule understandingly. As I was Norma's friend, I felt like I should give her some support, but nothing to get me in trouble. "I know she is looking forward to that day. I'm positive she only acts this way because she wants to be with the one she loves."

Romule made a friendly smile at me. "There is no doubt about that." Then he sighed and sat down at his desk. "Well if you are going to be off, tell Norma to get me when dinner is ready."

I nodded in agreement, "I will. Should I close the door or leave it open."

He said quickly, "Close it please." I gave him a knowing smile thinking to myself he was lucky that Norma could put up with this. She must have to clean the house every day if this was how he behaved. I didn't realize how much I appreciated Tom's structured lifestyle until now.

I peaked into the kitchen and watched as Norma was putting something in the oven. She turned to grab something near the door and saw me. "Oh, no need to help me. Just make yourself comfortable. Is Romule out there with you?"

"Actually Norma, I need to go run a few errands right now -"

"Right now?" Norma cried.

I made an apologetic face. "Yes, I'm so sorry. I really want to have it done sooner rather than later, and I thought that you and Romule could use the alone time. He said to fetch him when dinner is ready."

Her face turned dark. "That's what he always says when he comes home, and then he always takes his dinner in there." I wondered, horrified, if she ever had to go in to get the plate after. Norma quickly translated my silent thoughts and strained face. "I take it you went inside of his study?"

I nodded, "It's... quite -"

She held up a stiff hand to stop me, "I don't want to even hear about that room. It is a blight and that's all I'll say."

I stifled a laugh, and a small smile snuck across her face. I said sadly, "You poor thing, is he that messy around the house?"

"Oh I don't let him. I'd go mad." Her eyes glowed with threat. I chuckled at the thought of Norma entering Romule's room. I remember we both did our best to keep our girls' room clean and neat while Meredith and Druella paid no mind to the messes they left behind. Romule, however, was on a scale I didn't even know existed.

She laughed with me, and slowly the sound subsided to sighed and smiles. Part of me did want to stay, but I wanted to get my mission over. I told myself, I could enjoy a few more evenings with Norma and Romule in the upcoming days. "Make sure he eats dinner with you, properly, at the table. Tell him your guest demanded it. I'm sure he's polite enough to comply."

"He is, but we will still miss you." She grabbed my hand and squeezed it. "I'm so happy you've come to visit. I hope you don't have to leave every night."

"I won't. It's tonight only, and then I plan on spending the rest of my days with you."

"Wonderful! Oh, and don't worry if you come back late, Romule is usually still up studying past midnight so he should be able to let you in." I squeezed her hand back, thankful for her friendship.

"Thank you Norma. I'll see you tomorrow."

"Oh, one more thing, before you go," she said as she ran around to her pantry. She pulled out a brown box with a lid. "I feel as if I shouldn't let you leave without a proper meal. Please take all of the sandwiches and biscuits from our tea to eat while you're out. I'm not sure when you'd get a chance to eat otherwise."

I was still full from all of the almond biscuits I had eaten, and I forgot that I would be hungry later. I warmly smiled. "Thank you again Norma."

AN I had to crack open my old documents from 2007 to find the "Yearbook" to see what my characters looked like what. I also put them up in a dropbox so if you want to see them, PM me or review and I will message you back a link.

It's been so long, I forgot how much I enjoyed writing. I hope you enjoy the story!

mrsk