Tom didn't remember being very little. He remembered the orphanage and Mrs. Cole but those memories were wrong. He wasn't an orphan, he had his Mummy. Mummy was always there in the beginning. He remembered seeing Mummy smile at him for the first time and the way Mummy had held him close when the mean strangers in scary masks had tried to grab him. He remembered how one of the strangers broke one of their arms when they tried to take him from Mummy. He didn't understand why everyone seemed so happy when that happened.
His Mummy was perfect, he gave Tom kisses and read him stories with voices! Mummy made even the scary masked people scared, they were always careful with Tom when Mummy was around. They talked about confusing things and called him a prince! But if he was a prince then Mummy had to be queen because Mummy was in charge.
He even had a secret power that only he and his Mummy shared, they had a language no one else could understand! Well except for the snakes in his room but that was different. He loved his life with his Mummy and while he wished the scary mask people weren't there and that Mummy didn't have those people following him around everywhere it was still nice.
Tom liked to ask his Mummy questions. His Mummy would always answer him or take him to the library to get answers. If Mummy and the books didn't know then they would ask Uncle Draco, he knew everything. Uncle Draco was his favorite, he knew everything about everything and let Tom ask as many questions as he wanted. He even had given Tom a gift, a stuffed white rabbit with red eyes. Tom liked to call him Billy. Uncle Draco always had a weird look on his face whenever he looked at Mummy. It looked like he was in pain. But the masked strangers always made them leave before they could spend too much time with Uncle Draco. Tom never liked having to leave.
Tom liked it best when Mummy told him about his scar. It was a symbol of their connection, proof that his Mummy had always wanted Tom. Tom had a scar too, one on his back. He couldn't see it very well but Mummy said it was just leftover love from when he was born. Mummy couldn't fit all the love into Tom.
They never got to go outside. Tom liked looking out the windows but he wasn't allowed to go outside. Well, that wasn't true. He could go outside but Mummy had to stay inside. And Tom didn't want to go with just the masked strangers so he stayed inside with Mummy. They read a lot of books and Mummy taught him his letters and numbers even though Tom knew them already. Mummy had been so shocked when Tom had used magic to make one of the masked strangers fall to the ground. He didn't know what the spell did but it felt familiar, comforting in a way. But the awful noise the stranger made was loud and Mummy told him to stop so he did.
It was dark when they left. Mummy had whispered that they were going on a trip but Tom knew he was lying. He had overheard Mummy and Uncle Draco speaking in hushed tones one night. It was hard to hear them outside of his room but they were planning to leave. He'd been afraid at first that they were going to leave without him but then Uncle Draco mentioned a potion that would let Tom sleep through the trip. And Mummy was going to carry him the whole time!
When that night finally came Tom pretended to drink his potions, not questioning the extra potion added in with his regular batch. He watched through slitted eyes as Mummy and Uncle Draco snuck out of their home. He didn't understand why they were leaving and a part of him didn't want to leave. But Mummy kept whispering into his hair that they were close and almost safe and he would always believe his Mummy. He felt something ripple over him after some time and couldn't help but shudder in his Mummy's arms. His Mummy just rubbed his back right over his scar and kissed his head.
He opened his eyes, no longer pretending to be asleep, and saw a road ahead of them. He looked around and there was a dense forest behind them. Uncle Draco was sweating a lot and had blood coming out of his nose and he was holding Billy. He looked sick. Then Mummy kissed his head again and pressed another potion bottle to his lips. This time he couldn't pretend to drink it while Mummy watched and Tom fell asleep before he'd even finished the vial.
When he woke up it was to screaming. They weren't at home anymore or in the woods. They were somewhere too bright, the walls a pale white and the candles giving off bright white light. Tom reached up to rub his eyes but he couldn't move his arm. He couldn't move either arm or his legs, there was something cold and hard stopping him from moving. He turned his head to the side to see that it was Mummy who was yelling. His Mummy was reaching for him and there were people in white robes holding his Mummy back as he cried for Tom. He'd never seen his Mummy cry like that before and it made Tom scared. He wanted his Mummy! He wanted his Mummy now!
Some of the white-robed people fell over or were pushed into the wall and made loud crunching noises but Tom didn't care. He wanted his Mummy! He screamed and the bed rattled around him. The walls were shaking and he was angry, he wanted his Mummy! They had to let his Mummy near him! His Mummy would make everything better. He felt something sharp prick his neck and looked over in surprise, one of the people had snuck up on him. Tom narrowed his eyes and the stranger crumpled. Still, whatever they had done made him so tired. He need his Mummy and he needed sleep.
Tom woke up again in somewhere new. It wasn't overly bright in the place but it was uncomfortable and the air felt wrong. Like it was squeezing him too tight. The walls were all dark and he couldn't see an exit, just scary enclosed walls. There wasn't a bed here either, just a blanket on the floor and no pillow. His arms were stuck together and so were his legs with a dark metal that had little symbols and made his insides hurt. And worst of all Mummy and Billy were nowhere in sight. He had cried for a while, hoping his Mummy or Uncle Draco would come and take him back home. Take him somewhere safe.
It was a while later that someone came to see him. The wall slid open and Tom scrambled to sit up and face the person who had taken him away from his Mummy and locked him up. A few people stepped into his little space. There was a man with red hair who looked like he was very mad and sad at the same time who he later learned was named Auror Weasley. A prim-looking woman with a quill and parchment in hand named Secretary Kimble. A cloaked figure bathed in unnatural darkness that obscured their features, more darkness than even the room had to offer named Unspeakable Moonweaver. And finally, a very scary looking older man who sneered down at Tom named Auror Valstrov.
They came into his little room a lot. Unspeakable Moonweaver would poke and prod him with magic and other trinkets that made him feel funny. One had hurt a lot when it touched his back but they never used it again. Auror Weasley and Auror Valstrov came to his room a lot too, they asked him questions or Auror Valstrov would yell at him and throw things until Tom started crying and then Auror Weasley would make him leave. Sometimes Auror Weasley answered his questions but usually they just asked him things that didn't make sense.
Did he remember being an adult? No, he was still little. His Mummy said Tom was his little prince.
Did he remember the faces of any of the people from home? No, they all had on masks. Sometimes the masks fell off when they fell to the floor and were quiet for a long time but his Mummy always made Tom look away when that happened. The only person without a mask always was Mummy and Uncle Draco.
Why was he here? Because they took him away from his Mummy.
What were his plans? To get back to Mummy. He missed his Mummy.
Auror Weasley always looked sick when he mentioned Mummy, like Tom had said something wrong. He didn't understand what he did wrong, he just wanted his Mummy back. Most days he couldn't answer questions for very long before he started crying for his Mummy and Uncle Draco and Billy. His Mummy had promised he would be safe. Where was his Mummy to make sure he was safe? Tom didn't like it here, not at all.
Wrote this a bit ago on Mother's Day featuring Tom and Harry. Finally got back into writing, you might see some more on this one soon.
