Disclaimer: Sorry I forgot one before! I don't own Tom Riddle, Professor
Dippet, or Hogwarts, etc. All other characters and events are mine!
Chapter I
"The Hogwarts Express"
Tom Riddle made his way through the crowds of muggles which seemed to be pressing in from all sides. He was recieving quite a few stares as he made his way to the space between platforms nine and ten where platform nine and three-quarters was supposed to be. These bemused looks were well-credited, too, considering the huge trunk Tom was lugging behind him, and the fairly good-sized snake which was wrapped about his shoulders. Even stranger, this snake was hissing, and Tom was hissing in reply!
"I thought...you knew...where thisss...'platform nine and...three-quarterssss' wassss..." hissed the snake.
Tom, who was the only one to hear anything from the snake besides incoherent hisses, answered her irritably. "I do know where it is, Nagini!" The boy looked around. There was platform nine...and there was platform ten. There was nothing in between them but a plain, brick wall.
The snake started hissing in a way that Tom knew meant laughter.
"Shut up, Nagini! We'll find it, just let me think." He walked up to the wall and started musing to himself. "Well, if this platform is only for wizards, then it must be protected by magic..."
"Did...you think...that one up...all on your...own?" hissed Nagini.
"You know," said Tom, talking to the snake. "I've been wanting to try out a potion that calls for snake blood..."
Nagini immediently fell silent.
Tom sighed and leaned heavily against the wall. "There's got to be a way to-Aaaah!" The wall had suddenly lost all its solidity, and when Tom re-opened his eyes, he was on another platform! He looked up and saw a sign that read 9 3\4. He had gone through the wall, and was now on the other side!
He looked anxiously at his surroundings. There were still plenty of people around, but none of them were muggles. Parents were hugging and kissing their children goodbye, and making sure that they had all that they needed for the new school year. A train blew its whistle, signalling that it would be leaving in fifteen minutes.
"See?" said Tom somewhat smugly. "I told you we'd find it eventually."
Nagini muttered something Tom couldn't quite catch.
"What was that, Nagini?" asked Tom.
When Nagini remained silent, Tom spoke again. "I advise you to remember, Nagini, that if I hadn't bought you, then your blood probably would be in a potion right now."
Nagini muttered a quick apology, and remained silent for quite some time. No doubt she was thinking about the horrible picture her master had put into her mind.
Tom made his way towards the train. He couldn't help but notice that even though he was in a crowd full of wizards and witches, where he should look entirely normal, he was still recieving strange glances and dark looks. Perhaps it was the snake coiled around his neck, for something was causing the mothers to give him suspicious stares, then draw their children to the side and whisper warnings in their ears.
One particular mother and son attracted Tom's attemtion more than the others. The boy looked about his age, with light brown hair and deep brown eyes. The mother had similar features, but with a rounder face and a stern expression written on it.
The boy had glanced at Tom, then his eyes fell on the snake. Wide-eyed with interest, he had snuck away from his oblivious mother, who was having a conversation with another witch, and started walking towards Tom.
"Is that your snake?" he asked.
'Oh,no, it's not mine at all. I just happen to have it wrapped around my neck, that's all,' Tom thought. But his real answer was, " Yes, she's mine."
"Huh, wish my mum would allow me to have one. But she claims that they're 'evil' and that only dark wizards have them, but I think they're really cool. Can I touch it?"
Before Tom could reply, however, the boy's mother called him away. "Dustin! Come here this instant!"
The boy smiled sheepishly at Tom, took one last look at Nagini, then went to his mom.
"What did I tell you about staying close to me while at the station? And I don't want you associating with kids like that," Dustin's mother added, pointing at Tom. "They bring nothing but trouble wherever they go."
'How dare she?!' thought Tom increduously. This woman didn't even know him; how could she be so judgemental?
Burning with anger, Tom at least had the satisfaction of sending a glare at the woman once, when she glanced at him. The woman looked startled at such an intense gaze, and quickly looked away.
Having no one to say goodbye to, Tom immediatley boarded the Hogwarts Express, (for that was what the train was called) and walked down the corridor until he reached an empty compartement. Once there, he shoved his trunk under the seat, and uncoiled Nagini from his shoulders.
"What are...you doing...?" the snake hissed indignantly as she was unceremoniously dropped onto the seat next to Tom.
"Removing your dead weight from my shoulders," Tom hissed in return. He leaned back in his seat, glad to have some time to rest. He had been on his feet ever since he had gotten off the bus that had taken him to King's Cross Station.
Tom sighed. However this Hogwarts place turned out , it had to be better than the place he had just left. Ever since the death of his mother when he was eight, Tom had lived at an extremely horrible orphanage; a muggle one, no less! When the strict, rather ugly headmistress had handed him the mysterious letter, Tom had been only too eager to accept.
Tom's mother had told him of Hogwarts School of Witchcraft and Wizardry many times when she was alive. She had expressed how much she would love to see him attend school there. Tom let loose another sigh. Now she never would. He shook his head. He couldn't let himself think too much about his mother, he would depress himself. He should be happy today, which he was, a little bit. He would be surrounded by magic again.
When he had followed the instructions on his letter, which told him to purchase his school supplies at Diagon Alley, he had a little trouble finding the place. He hadn't been there since his mother's death, but when he found it, it felt like home. He had walked down the streets, peeking into shops that hadn't really changed much since he was eight. He had gone to Gringott's Bank, and once he had retrieved some of the money his mother had left him, set out to get his school supplies. He went to Flourish and Blott's to pick up the books he needed, and while he was there, also bought a book on curses that seemed interesting. His mother had told him to learn only the curses that were necessary because more than that could be considered using the Dark Arts, which she had always warned him against. Yet Tom couldn't help himself; he wanted to learn as much as he could about magic in general, and that included curses. Most of them were currently too advanced for him, but he would learn.
He had gone to Ollivander's wand shop, and had finally purchased his magic wand, something he had looked forward to ever since he could remember. He recalled watching his mother use hers, and had wanted one for himself ever since. According to Mr. Ollivander, (a very creepy old man in Tom's opinion) Tom's wand was very powerful. It was thirteen-and-a- half inches long, made of yew, and there was a pheonix feather inside. Mr. Ollivander had predicted that Tom would be a great wizard someday. Tom hoped he was right.
Tom was jerked out of his thoughts by the extremely loud whistle of the train, which was signalling that it was time to go. The last few students got on board, and many loud voices trailed through the corridor.
Suddenly, the door of Tom's compartement opened, and the boy from earlier, Dustin, walked in.
"Hey, can I sit here?" asked Dustin.
Tom sneered. "I thought that you weren't allowed to talk to 'kids like me'."
Dustin shifted uncomfortably. "Oh...that's just my mum. But I think you seem pretty cool." Dustin stood there for a moment, while Tom just looked at him. It was almost as if Dustin was under inspection or something. He supposed he passed, because Tom nodded slightly, and told him to sit down if he wanted to.
Dustin took the seat opposite of Tom and shoved his stuff under it. Nagini slithered up to him, her tongue flitting in and out of her mouth as she tasted the air. After a moment, she crawled back to Tom, hissed something at him, then looked intently at Dustin. Tom laughed at the snake, as if he and it had shared some private joke. Dustin wasn't sure he liked that laugh; it was cold and bitter, and sounded strange coming out of the mouth of an eleven-year-old.
Just then, the train whistle blew, and they were on their way to Hogwarts.
"So," Tom said abruptly. "Your name's Dustin."
The boy seemed startled. "Yes...how did you know that?"
Tom smiled mysteriously, then laughed at the bewildered look on Dustin's face. "I heard your mum calling you."
"Oh!" Dustin laughed. "Then what's your name?"
"Tom Riddle."
"Riddle? I've never heard of that surname." He hesitated. "Are your parents muggles?"
"One of them was..."
"Then you're a half-blood?"
Tom blinked. What was wrong with that? "Yes...I suppose so..."
"Now my mum will really hate me for hanging out with you. This is getting better by the minute!" said Dustin happily.
"You want your mum to hate you?" asked Tom. If he still had a mother, he would never want her to hate him.
"Well, I'm not going to go into the details, but to put it bluntly-I hate my whole family."
'At least you have a family.' Tom didn't say anything audible, though.
"So...what house do you think you'll be put into?" asked Dustin after a few minutes. "My mum wants me to be put into Ravenclaw, but I'm pretty sure that I'll be in Slytherin."
"My mum was a Gryffindor, so I might be sorted into that house."
"No, I think you'll be in Slytherin, too. You seem to be the type."
Tom wasn't quite sure what 'the type' was, but didn't ask any questions. They continued to discuss other topics until they arrived at Hogwarts.
Chapter I
"The Hogwarts Express"
Tom Riddle made his way through the crowds of muggles which seemed to be pressing in from all sides. He was recieving quite a few stares as he made his way to the space between platforms nine and ten where platform nine and three-quarters was supposed to be. These bemused looks were well-credited, too, considering the huge trunk Tom was lugging behind him, and the fairly good-sized snake which was wrapped about his shoulders. Even stranger, this snake was hissing, and Tom was hissing in reply!
"I thought...you knew...where thisss...'platform nine and...three-quarterssss' wassss..." hissed the snake.
Tom, who was the only one to hear anything from the snake besides incoherent hisses, answered her irritably. "I do know where it is, Nagini!" The boy looked around. There was platform nine...and there was platform ten. There was nothing in between them but a plain, brick wall.
The snake started hissing in a way that Tom knew meant laughter.
"Shut up, Nagini! We'll find it, just let me think." He walked up to the wall and started musing to himself. "Well, if this platform is only for wizards, then it must be protected by magic..."
"Did...you think...that one up...all on your...own?" hissed Nagini.
"You know," said Tom, talking to the snake. "I've been wanting to try out a potion that calls for snake blood..."
Nagini immediently fell silent.
Tom sighed and leaned heavily against the wall. "There's got to be a way to-Aaaah!" The wall had suddenly lost all its solidity, and when Tom re-opened his eyes, he was on another platform! He looked up and saw a sign that read 9 3\4. He had gone through the wall, and was now on the other side!
He looked anxiously at his surroundings. There were still plenty of people around, but none of them were muggles. Parents were hugging and kissing their children goodbye, and making sure that they had all that they needed for the new school year. A train blew its whistle, signalling that it would be leaving in fifteen minutes.
"See?" said Tom somewhat smugly. "I told you we'd find it eventually."
Nagini muttered something Tom couldn't quite catch.
"What was that, Nagini?" asked Tom.
When Nagini remained silent, Tom spoke again. "I advise you to remember, Nagini, that if I hadn't bought you, then your blood probably would be in a potion right now."
Nagini muttered a quick apology, and remained silent for quite some time. No doubt she was thinking about the horrible picture her master had put into her mind.
Tom made his way towards the train. He couldn't help but notice that even though he was in a crowd full of wizards and witches, where he should look entirely normal, he was still recieving strange glances and dark looks. Perhaps it was the snake coiled around his neck, for something was causing the mothers to give him suspicious stares, then draw their children to the side and whisper warnings in their ears.
One particular mother and son attracted Tom's attemtion more than the others. The boy looked about his age, with light brown hair and deep brown eyes. The mother had similar features, but with a rounder face and a stern expression written on it.
The boy had glanced at Tom, then his eyes fell on the snake. Wide-eyed with interest, he had snuck away from his oblivious mother, who was having a conversation with another witch, and started walking towards Tom.
"Is that your snake?" he asked.
'Oh,no, it's not mine at all. I just happen to have it wrapped around my neck, that's all,' Tom thought. But his real answer was, " Yes, she's mine."
"Huh, wish my mum would allow me to have one. But she claims that they're 'evil' and that only dark wizards have them, but I think they're really cool. Can I touch it?"
Before Tom could reply, however, the boy's mother called him away. "Dustin! Come here this instant!"
The boy smiled sheepishly at Tom, took one last look at Nagini, then went to his mom.
"What did I tell you about staying close to me while at the station? And I don't want you associating with kids like that," Dustin's mother added, pointing at Tom. "They bring nothing but trouble wherever they go."
'How dare she?!' thought Tom increduously. This woman didn't even know him; how could she be so judgemental?
Burning with anger, Tom at least had the satisfaction of sending a glare at the woman once, when she glanced at him. The woman looked startled at such an intense gaze, and quickly looked away.
Having no one to say goodbye to, Tom immediatley boarded the Hogwarts Express, (for that was what the train was called) and walked down the corridor until he reached an empty compartement. Once there, he shoved his trunk under the seat, and uncoiled Nagini from his shoulders.
"What are...you doing...?" the snake hissed indignantly as she was unceremoniously dropped onto the seat next to Tom.
"Removing your dead weight from my shoulders," Tom hissed in return. He leaned back in his seat, glad to have some time to rest. He had been on his feet ever since he had gotten off the bus that had taken him to King's Cross Station.
Tom sighed. However this Hogwarts place turned out , it had to be better than the place he had just left. Ever since the death of his mother when he was eight, Tom had lived at an extremely horrible orphanage; a muggle one, no less! When the strict, rather ugly headmistress had handed him the mysterious letter, Tom had been only too eager to accept.
Tom's mother had told him of Hogwarts School of Witchcraft and Wizardry many times when she was alive. She had expressed how much she would love to see him attend school there. Tom let loose another sigh. Now she never would. He shook his head. He couldn't let himself think too much about his mother, he would depress himself. He should be happy today, which he was, a little bit. He would be surrounded by magic again.
When he had followed the instructions on his letter, which told him to purchase his school supplies at Diagon Alley, he had a little trouble finding the place. He hadn't been there since his mother's death, but when he found it, it felt like home. He had walked down the streets, peeking into shops that hadn't really changed much since he was eight. He had gone to Gringott's Bank, and once he had retrieved some of the money his mother had left him, set out to get his school supplies. He went to Flourish and Blott's to pick up the books he needed, and while he was there, also bought a book on curses that seemed interesting. His mother had told him to learn only the curses that were necessary because more than that could be considered using the Dark Arts, which she had always warned him against. Yet Tom couldn't help himself; he wanted to learn as much as he could about magic in general, and that included curses. Most of them were currently too advanced for him, but he would learn.
He had gone to Ollivander's wand shop, and had finally purchased his magic wand, something he had looked forward to ever since he could remember. He recalled watching his mother use hers, and had wanted one for himself ever since. According to Mr. Ollivander, (a very creepy old man in Tom's opinion) Tom's wand was very powerful. It was thirteen-and-a- half inches long, made of yew, and there was a pheonix feather inside. Mr. Ollivander had predicted that Tom would be a great wizard someday. Tom hoped he was right.
Tom was jerked out of his thoughts by the extremely loud whistle of the train, which was signalling that it was time to go. The last few students got on board, and many loud voices trailed through the corridor.
Suddenly, the door of Tom's compartement opened, and the boy from earlier, Dustin, walked in.
"Hey, can I sit here?" asked Dustin.
Tom sneered. "I thought that you weren't allowed to talk to 'kids like me'."
Dustin shifted uncomfortably. "Oh...that's just my mum. But I think you seem pretty cool." Dustin stood there for a moment, while Tom just looked at him. It was almost as if Dustin was under inspection or something. He supposed he passed, because Tom nodded slightly, and told him to sit down if he wanted to.
Dustin took the seat opposite of Tom and shoved his stuff under it. Nagini slithered up to him, her tongue flitting in and out of her mouth as she tasted the air. After a moment, she crawled back to Tom, hissed something at him, then looked intently at Dustin. Tom laughed at the snake, as if he and it had shared some private joke. Dustin wasn't sure he liked that laugh; it was cold and bitter, and sounded strange coming out of the mouth of an eleven-year-old.
Just then, the train whistle blew, and they were on their way to Hogwarts.
"So," Tom said abruptly. "Your name's Dustin."
The boy seemed startled. "Yes...how did you know that?"
Tom smiled mysteriously, then laughed at the bewildered look on Dustin's face. "I heard your mum calling you."
"Oh!" Dustin laughed. "Then what's your name?"
"Tom Riddle."
"Riddle? I've never heard of that surname." He hesitated. "Are your parents muggles?"
"One of them was..."
"Then you're a half-blood?"
Tom blinked. What was wrong with that? "Yes...I suppose so..."
"Now my mum will really hate me for hanging out with you. This is getting better by the minute!" said Dustin happily.
"You want your mum to hate you?" asked Tom. If he still had a mother, he would never want her to hate him.
"Well, I'm not going to go into the details, but to put it bluntly-I hate my whole family."
'At least you have a family.' Tom didn't say anything audible, though.
"So...what house do you think you'll be put into?" asked Dustin after a few minutes. "My mum wants me to be put into Ravenclaw, but I'm pretty sure that I'll be in Slytherin."
"My mum was a Gryffindor, so I might be sorted into that house."
"No, I think you'll be in Slytherin, too. You seem to be the type."
Tom wasn't quite sure what 'the type' was, but didn't ask any questions. They continued to discuss other topics until they arrived at Hogwarts.