awkwardtimeagent: I agree completely. Puffs deserve recognition too! I'm one myself on Pottermore :D . Thank you for your support :)
lilmisadiva: Seemed like an adeqyate tweak :) what do you think?
Note to self. Never edit a story in UC browser mini. The entire document gets royally fudged.
Orphaned No More
Chapter Seven
Thomas Riddle had never seen Merope Gaunt after or before rumors started up about her eloping with his son. This was of course not the same for his wife, Mary Riddle, who made it her business to know everyone and everything about everyone in Little Hangleton. For gossip purposes mostly, but she believed it to be her right to know what was happening and who it was happening to.
After visiting her ailing sister Martha in London for the past week or more she thought it best to return home when her husband sent her a very cryptic letter. Subtlety was never his strong suit.
"My Dear Mary
I hope to God you have not caught Martha's ailment, as lovely as she is she simply does not know how to cover up her infernal sneezing.
Our boy seems to be showing a grand amount of chivalry these days. He seems to have 'requested' a young just widowed and newly-became mother of two babies to move into our Manor.
Before outrage envelopes your fair face, I will have you know that we are in her debt. She became a widow while her husband saved our son from some dreadful war traitors.
I do hope you return soon, the Manor and its inhabitants miss you dearly.
Yours till death
Thomas
Outrage did envelope her face. This was a lie. This widow and war traitor's story was from a Romance Novel in her library. Tom did enjoy reading so he must have read that book at some point and was now using its plot as a lie of an excuse to harbor a woman at the Manor."Scandalous" she thought.
A few more seconds of thinking had her rushing to her sister's bedroom, kissing her goodbye, packing her bags and leaving by her private carriage for Little Hangleton.
The epiphany that had made her hurry back home was:
It had been exactly nine months since Tom and that wretched Merope Gaunt had disappeared together from Little Hangleton.
...
It was a good day as any to take a walk in the Manor gardens. But fate had its strange ways of being humorous.
The thought of taking a walk in the gardens occurred to two people at the same time on that fair day.
Merope walked by the Lilies and admired Raoul's handiwork as she saw how well the bushes were cut and arranged. She was sure the small eyed young wizard had used his wand on them come night time when everyone would have been asleep.
She walked by an Apple tree and saw a badly balanced ladder put up against it. A man was standing on the ladder but his face was obscured by the leaves.
"Raoul at work" she thought as she walked up to the tree.
"What exactly are you up to?" said a woman's voice unexpectedly and made Tom lose his balance and fall down the tree he had climbed up on to get an apple before Raoul packed them up for later.
He expected to fall down with a thud but something held him in the air meters from the ground. He was flabbergasted at two things.
One, he was levitating.
Two, the one doing it was Merope.
Both their eyes were transfixed with each other as she kept her wand pointed at him, shock apparent in both their eyes. It seemed that she wanted to speak but it was as if no words escaped her mouth.
So he decided to break the ice.
"Put me down, Please" he stated blankly.
She released her spell and he managed to fall on his feet. He mentally thanked God for preserving the last bit of dignity he had left by letting that part happen.
He dusted himself up as she hurriedly put her wand in her cloak and made to leave with all speed.
He ran up to her and caught her by her arm and then
"I'm sorry!" "Thank you!"
Said two voices together shocking each other
Tom looked towards her eyes that looked no less surprised than his as she turned to him.
"Why are you apologizing? Tom" she asked with a distant tone in her voice.
"Why are you thanking me? Merope" he replied with an equally distant tone, albeit a question.
Silence stayed between them as the wind blew her hair over her face. Then she said:
"For letting me stay, despite what I had done. Thank you"
He stood quiet as he pondered for a while and replied
"For not letting you explain yourself and for leaving because I was afraid, I'm sorry"
He had done some thinking and he realized that he had indeed regained most of his consciousness as she decreased and eventually stopped giving him that potion back then and despite that he had not left until she told him who she was and what she had done.
A rogue tear made its way down her cheek without letting her stop it as she stood there dumbfounded.
He looked at where his hand was and it was still gripping her arm tightly. He lightly brushed her arm with his thumb and let go.
Volumes had been said in those few words.
She lifted her hand and wiped her tears with the back of her wrist and composed her breathing. Her heart was beating erratically and so was his.
"Master Tom" said a female's voice interrupting both of their thoughts and leading them to look at Jenny who stood nearby fidgeting with her fingers. Tom broke out of his reverie and acknowledged Jenny with a nod, she said:
"Your mother is home and she is requesting your company immediately"
Surprise etched on his face and as he glanced at Merope once and wordlessly smiled at her and left the gardens.
Merope tried to look at Jenny with a smile but she was rewarded with a disgusted look as Jenny walked away from her without a word, Blonde hair blowing fiercely behind her back from under the white cotton cap she wore.
Merope's heart hurt with a pang as she tried to figure out what had she done to upset the first friend she had ever made.
