Betrayal 4/4

When the Christmas holidays came round a large number of pupils decided to stay at Hogwarts. The Headmaster even invited the families of some of the students to visit; mainly Gryffindor families, the Weasleys being the most obvious. Harry was well aware this was all part of Dumbledore's plan to bind him to Hogwarts and the 'cause of the light'. Having Molly Weasley cluck over him like a lost son, and the other boys start to include him in their games and pranks, might have had more effect if at the same time they weren't doing their best to keep him away from Ginny.

It wasn't as if Harry wanted to spend time with the youngest Weasley, his doppelganger's girlfriend, but it didn't engender feelings of friendship and trust when he noticed that they didn't trust him with their sister. She had the Dark Mark. Her boyfriend had turned out to be a Death Eater in disguise. They didn't want to take any risks with somebody who had spent the past three years with the Dark Lord himself, even if he was the real Harry Potter.

Many of the Slytherins had decided to stay as well, a most unusual state of affairs. Harry recognized most of them to be children of Death Eaters, and he suspected this was on the behest of Voldemort or their parents, he suspected the latter. Apparently the time to wait and see had passed, and now they were actively seeking to gain his friendship and ensure his loyalty, or perhaps their loyalty to him as Lord Voldemort's favourite.

For it was clear that Harry still was Voldemort's favourite. Although there had been no attempts to recapture him, in the weeks after Harry's abduction the Dark Lord had increased his activities, in particular against those people he saw as having a hand in the theft of his charge. For a short while there had even been talk of negotiating a truce with Voldemort: Harry in return for peace. Fortunately that had never got off the ground. Voldemort had shown no interest and Dumbledore had made it clear that he was not going to relinquish the Boy-Who-Lived to the Dark Lord.

The past month had been quiet, and people feared that Voldemort was just waiting to make his move. Harry hadn't asked Severus whether he knew what Tom was up to; he doubted that Severus would allow for Harry to be kidnapped by Voldemort again, not after the trouble the Potions Master had gone through that summer.

When Draco Malfoy walked up to him during dinner one evening and offered his friendship, Harry accepted. The next few days he hardly had an opportunity to even speak to the Slytherin, or come near any Slytherins for that matter, as the Gryffindors seemed to have made it their task to keep him occupied all the time. They too tried to make friends with him, and never ceased to disparage the other side.

Harry knew none of them wanted to be his friend because he was Harry. He was starting to feel suffocated by the persona of the Boy-Who-Lived, and he took to spending most of his time either in Severus' private potions laboratory, or hidden in a corner of the library.

Sirius and Remus weren't too bad, although Harry felt they were predominantly looking after him because they had been friends of his parents and the fight they'd had hung above them like an omnipresent cloud. It had been fun for a while to hear stories about James and Lily, but the truth was Harry had never known his parents and so could not really miss them. There was really no point to it either: they were dead and had had no part in his growing up. But of all the people at Hogwarts except Severus, he felt Sirius and Remus came closest to seeing him for Harry, and not as the Boy-Who-Lived, or a tool to use either against Voldemort or to gain the Dark Lord's favour.

When Christmas finally arrived, Harry spent most of the day with Sirius on the Quidditch pitch flying with the new Firebolt his godfather had given him. The air was cold, but the sky was blue and the sun was shining; flying had been exhilarating and helped to distract him. Harry was glad that he'd been left alone for the rest of the day; he didn't want to deal with the Weasleys and the Gryffindors attempts at befriending him, nor those of the Slytherins. Dinner in the Great Hall had been all right, they'd all sat along one large table as the house elves served up a veritable feast. But Harry had excused himself early, told Sirius to enjoy the rest of the evening with Remus, and then secluded himself behind the curtains of his bed.

Severus hadn't been present, the only staff member absent. But Harry knew where he was, he'd felt the tell-tale tingle of Severus' summoning early in the afternoon. Harry remembered his last Christmas at Riddle Mansion with Severus, Tom, and Nagini. He bit his lip and tried to think of other things. Dumbledore had given him an ancient Potions Tome, written by one of Gryffindor's students. The Headmaster was obviously not above bribes in an attempt to gain Harry's loyalty. Harry had accepted the book; he was hardly going to turn something like that down, even if it was given with such blatant ulterior motives.

He spent the rest of the evening reading; the other boys would return late from the festivities in the Great Hall. Besides, they had learnt not to intrude on Harry's privacy. It was just past eleven when Harry sensed Severus' return. Earlier than normal, and he wondered if something was wrong. After a brief hesitation he put the book aside and took his invisibility cloak from the chest at the foot of his bed.

He made his way down to the dungeons and Severus' quarters. Severus always reported to Dumbledore first, and after finding Harry sitting on his doorstep a few times, waiting for him, he'd given Harry the password to his chambers. Harry lit a fire in the fireplace and curled up on one of the couches in front of it. He picked up the Potions manual he'd been reading the last time he was here, and continued where he left off.

Harry still wasn't sure what he thought about Severus' spying for Dumbledore. On the one hand he was still angry with Tom, and this kind of betrayal of the Dark Lord pleased him; but on the other hand, Harry had little love for Dumbledore and Severus' treachery to Tom felt like Severus was betraying Harry as well. Like so many things in his life now, it was all a mess and he tried not to dwell on what he could not change, on what he did not want to become involved in. It was enough that he'd been able to come to a tentative truce with Severus: he needed his time with the Potions Master. Severus was the only one, beside Tom, who really saw Harry for Harry and the Potions Master didn't seem to want anything from Harry but his company.

It was maybe an hour later when Severus entered his chambers, not at all surprised to find Harry reading on his couch. He shrugged out of his robes, carefully taking a small object wrapped in dark cloth from one of his pockets. He sat down on the couch next to Harry and the serious look on his face made Harry straighten up.

"Is something wrong?"

Harry normally never asked about Severus' meetings with either Tom or Dumbledore. He didn't want to know, didn't want to be pulled into the conflict. He didn't want to be forced to choose. Severus never volunteered information either, other than that first time when he'd said Tom did care for Harry, in his own way. Their conversations were rather on school topics, Quidditch, Potions, and the like.

Severus glanced down at the round package in his hands before answering.

"Not exactly. Voldemort gave me this: it's a Christmas present for you. Albus – The Headmaster was reluctant to allow me to give it to you, it took some convincing." He offered the bundle to Harry, but Harry made no move to take it. This was the first communication from Tom, the first attempt as far as he was aware. For three months he had had no word from Tom, not through Severus, not through anybody else.

"What is it?" he asked, looking straight into Severus' dark eyes as the Potions Master continued to hold the gift out to him.

"I don't know. He didn't tell me, and Albus could not open it. The Headmaster checked it for spells; there don't seem to be any dark spells on it, nothing that will harm you. We're sure it isn't a portkey, Albus was very thorough in checking for that."

Harry hesitated. A Christmas gift from Tom. But did he really want to accept something from the man who had murdered his parents, who had attempted to murder him?

"You think I should have it?"

Severus breathed deeply and then nodded. "The choice is yours, but I had to offer it to you. He would know otherwise, that's why Albus finally agreed."

"Will he get angry with you if I don't accept it?"

"He might. But it's your decision. He said the gift would explain things, and that he means you no harm."

Harry bit his lip and then reached out to take the bundle from Severus. He could at least have a look; there wasn't any harm in looking, was there?

He unfolded the dark cloth to reveal a perfect sphere made of dark wood. There were intricate carvings on the outside and Harry carefully turned the globe round in his hands, looking for a way to open it. He looked up at Severus questioningly, but the other man shook his head slightly to indicate he didn't know how to open it either. After a minute Harry took out his wand and placed the sphere on the coffee table in front of them. Severus pulled his own wand and was eyeing the mysterious gift cautiously as Harry tapped the tip of his wand to the wood.

"Alohamora."

Vertical lines appeared along the orb's surface, and the wood fell in parts aside, revealing the globe's content.

A small diamond and black patterned snake uncoiled and flicked its tongue to taste its surroundings as its crimson eyes immediately focused on Harry.

"Are you Master Harry?" it asked, ignoring Severus who had backed away slightly but still kept his wand trained on the serpent.

Slowly Harry nodded. "I am Harry. Who are you?"

The snake rubbed its scales against each other in a pleased fashion before slithering to the edge of the table.

"I am yours."

"What is your name?"

"I am yours to name, Master Harry. I am a gift from Thomas; I have a message for you. Will you hear it?"

Harry glanced aside at Severus who was watching them. He looked back at the snake and nodded.

"Thomas says he is sorry that he hurt you. He regrets killing your parents, and he regrets trying to kill you. But, he says, he does not regret abducting you, getting to know you; he does not regret caring for you. He is sorry for causing you pain; all he wanted was for you to have a happy childhood, like you both talked about. He is glad to hear you are doing well in your studies; he is proud of you and says he always will be.

"Thomas does not ask your forgiveness for something that is unforgivable, but he wants you to know that he never lied to you when he said he cared, when he said he loved you. Thomas wants you to be happy. Thomas says he realises that you will be happiest at Hogwarts at the moment. He wishes you good luck and fun at school. He hopes you make many more friends."

The little serpent paused for a moment, and continued when it saw Harry was indeed still listening.

"Thomas promises he will not interfere. You are safe to stay at Hogwarts, he will not take you away, and he will do nothing to Hogwarts until you have finished your schooling. He will not try to persuade you to join him. Thomas says you are to make up your own mind; he will not attempt to unduly influence your choice, and you will only have to choose once you've finished school. He wants you to have a happy childhood unlike he had.

"Thomas loves you and he wants you to be happy."

Its speech finished the serpent watched Harry expectantly. Harry breathed deeply and closed his eyes.

A truce. Tom was offering him a truce. Harry would be free and safe from Voldemort until he graduated; Harry was free to use that time to make up his mind. And Tom cared enough to give him that freedom. A knot in his stomach, a tension that had been bothering him ever since he'd learnt of Voldemort's part in his parent's death, seemed to dissolve and for the first time in three months Harry felt at ease. Tom would not come for him, would not force him to choose, at least not for the next three and a half years.

Harry realised he was smiling, and he reached out to pick up Tom's gift. The small snake slithered onto the palms of his hands and then wound itself around his left forearm. He looked up at Severus who was watching the both of them warily.

"A truce. He is not going to attempt kidnapping me again; he is not going to attempt anything against Hogwarts until I've graduated." He looked down at the snake wrapped around his arm and gently stroked a finger along its scales. A small smile tugged at his lips. Tom always knew the right thing to do.

Severus nodded, a look of relief on his face, and he put his wand away.

"What's its name?"

Harry frowned. "She hasn't got one yet. I'm supposed to name her."

Severus' lips twisted into a wry smile. "I'm sure you'll think of something."

Harry nodded and then stood up.

"It's late; I guess I should be going, you're probably tired."

"A little. Merry Christmas, Harry."

Smiling Harry leaned forward and pressed a quick kiss to Severus' cheek.

"Merry Christmas, Severus," he said with a grin before pulling the invisibility cloak over himself. Severus shook his head and held the door open for him to leave.

The corridors were empty and silent on his way back to Gryffindor tower. All the students would have returned to their dorms by now and be fast asleep. So he was surprised when somebody said his name as he slipped in through the portrait hole to the common room.

"Harry."

Ginny was sitting on one of the couches in front of the fire. She must have been staring at the fire, there wasn't a book in sight and except for their presence there was nobody else. She'd looked up and didn't seem surprised at all by the fact the portrait had opened to admit seemingly nobody. Harry nearly checked to see if the cloak was still covering him, but then remembered that she'd probably had experience with the other Harry using it. After a moment's hesitation he dropped the cloak and sat down on one of the other couches.

"The others have already gone to bed," she said. She avoided looking at him, had averted her gaze the moment he'd dropped the cloak.

Harry joined her in her staring into the fire, idly stroking the snake coiled around his left forearm. What should he call her? At Ginny's gasp he looked up to find her half standing and staring wide-eyed at the snake.

"It's all right, she won't hurt you. Do you want to touch her?" Harry looked at the snake. "This is Ginny, you're not to bite her."

"Yes, Master."

Ginny continued to stare at him, making no move to sit back down let alone touch the snake.

"You speak Parseltongue?"

Harry frowned and then nodded. He'd forgotten about that. During his search for more information on Tom in the library he'd discovered that being able to talk to snakes was a rare ability. It was considered to be dark and until Tom Marvolo Riddle there had been no Parseltongues for centuries. He'd never noticed that he was speaking in a different language, but it did explain some stilted conversations with Severus. He still wondered why the Potions master had never told him. But then again, maybe Severus thought he knew. Or Tom had told him not to, that was also a possibility of course.

"Yes." There was not much else to say.

Ginny eyed the snake cautiously but when it made no sudden moves and just lay there languidly coiled around Harry's forearm she carefully sat down next to him on the couch. With a determined look she slowly reached out to touch it. She said a small 'Oh' when the snake moved beneath her fingers.

"What's her name?"

"She doesn't have one; I'm supposed to give her a name."

"Do you have any idea yet?"

"No. Do you know any good snake names?"

They both laughed and then fell into thoughtful silence.

"What about Sandra?"

"From Cassandra? Kind of an ominous name, don't you think?"

Ginny shrugged and Harry lifted the snake to his face.

"How would you like to be called Cassandra, little snake? Is that a good name for you?"

The snake twisted around his arm and flicked her tail a moment. "Yes, Cassandra, I like that name. A good choice, Master."

Harry grinned and looked back at Ginny. "She likes your idea."

"I'm glad. Where did you get her?"

Harry hesitated a moment before answering, but he figured if there was anyone beside Severus who would understand, it would be Ginny. She'd had Tom's diary for months. "She was a gift from Tom."

"Oh." Ginny bit her lip and looked away. Harry didn't know what else to say so he just watched Cassandra as he stroked her head.

"They don't trust me anymore," Ginny said all of a sudden. "Not that they think I'll suddenly start killing Muggleborns and such, but… You-Know-Who is alive again because of me, I've got his ruddy mark on my arm, and then to top it off my boyfriend turns out to be the Death Eater traitor responsible for the death of the Boy-Who-Lived's parents!"

"Hey," Harry said and he reached out to touch her shoulder.

"I can't go anywhere without people watching me, waiting for me to slip up and show that I knew what was going on. That I meant to help You-Know-Who, that I knew Harry – That I knew it was Pettigrew!" She laughed bitterly and Harry felt uncomfortable. It was clear this had been wanting to come out for a while, just his luck that it had to happen with him. Although, he guessed he was probably the only one who might understand. "And you want to know what the worst part of this mess is? I miss them both. Merlin, I was so stupid. I trusted Tom and he used me. I trusted Harry and he used me. They both lied to me and I loved them and I miss them and –"

"Shh, Ginny." He pulled her into his arms and let her cry against his chest. "Shh, it's going to be all right." Harry didn't really know what else to say, he understood her pain, understood the conflicting feelings. And while Tom had used him, had lied to him, he knew Tom did love him. He doubted Tom had loved Ginny, or even really cared about her. He remembered that dream of over a year ago, remembered Pettigrew pleading for Ginny's life. Pettigrew. Maybe if he told her about Wormtail…

"I used to dream about Wo – about Pettigrew. When he was here at Hogwarts I mean." Ginny had stopped crying but she stayed where she was, Harry found his arms settling around her shoulders as he continued talking. "It was mainly when he and Voldemort were in each others presence, so in first year I only ever dreamt of his DADA classes, sometimes when he was in the Great Hall. After Quirrell was killed I didn't dream of him for a long time, not until you got Tom's diary. Then I'd dream of him whenever you two were together and you had the diary with you.

It wasn't exactly as if I dreamed I was him, but I'd feel that way, know what he knew, feel what he felt. And when you were in the Chamber of Secrets, when Tom was going to kill you, Peter stopped him. He did save your life then."

Harry paused a moment, but Ginny didn't move, didn't tell him to stop or ask him to continue.

"After Tom returned to me I hardly ever dreamt of Peter again, only when his emotions were really strong and vivid, and then it wasn't as clear as the other dreams had been. I remember one dream around Christmas time."

Ginny giggled, slightly hysterically, and Harry chuckled as well, despite himself.

"He didn't lie when he said he loved you. Peter really did. When he died… I remember when the Dementors…" Harry hesitated, but Ginny was looking at him now, obviously wanting him to continue.

"We're not the same person, I am nothing like him. But the Harry you got to know, you cared about, he did exist, it just wasn't me. That was Peter. I guess one of the reasons Voldemort made him take my place was because he'd known my parents, but I remember – Toward the end, before Tom left the diary, he didn't want to serve Voldemort anymore, he was happy here, with his life, my life. Dumbledore doesn't know I know, but I dreamt about a few of their meetings. Dumbledore knew I was with Voldemort, but he'd have preferred to keep Peter pretending to be me. He'd promised to protect Peter, promised Peter he could keep my life, that he could keep you and all his friends."

Harry took a deep breath and calmed his anger. He was getting sidetracked, this wasn't about him.

"Peter didn't lie to you, he didn't use you. And Tom, well, Tom only ever does what he wants, so if he didn't kill you that was because he didn't want to."

Ginny wiped at her eyes and pushed herself upright.

"Thanks."

Harry's lips curled into a wry smile.

"I miss Tom too. Even though he murdered my parents; he was my first friend ever, he taught me magic, saved me from the Dursleys. Tom cared for me, about me. Harry. Not the bloody Boy-Who-Lived. Not like everybody else here. They all expect me to be like him, they want to be something I'm not. Even my own godfather would have preferred Wormtail's interpretation of "Harry Potter" to me."

"You and Harry are nothing alike."

"Finally, someone's noticed I'm not him. And I don't want to be him either."

Harry paused and when he continued his voice was subdued.

"I know Tom killed my parents, but – I never knew them, they didn't raise me, the Dursleys did. Tom and Severus and Nagini did. I know Tom isn't "good", I already knew that. I'd read the papers about what he and his Death Eaters did in the seventies. I know Voldemort killed people, and I know Tom's Voldemort as much as Voldemort's Tom. But, it didn't matter. He loved me, he would never have hurt me, and I didn't care. Tom –"

"He's a Dark Lord, he destroyed so many and is going to destroy many more if he's not stopped!"

"Yes, but, he was, he is good to me. And he had his reasons."

"You mean you actually believe all that pureblood crap?"

"It's not like that, we've discussed it, and he explained it to me. Blood doesn't matter, I mean, Tom's father was a Muggle, he's a half-blood himself. My mother was Muggleborn. It's just, Muggles, they wouldn't understand, they're dangerous and the less we have to do with them the better."

"I don't think the Dursleys are representative for all Muggles. Although I'll admit they are extremely horrid. My brothers even had to rescue Harry at the beginning of his second year; they'd barred his window and weren't going to let him return to Hogwarts."

Harry chuckled briefly at the image. He still believed Wormtail had deserved everything that came his way, but he didn't want to upset Ginny.

"I know that, but I agree with Tom, contact with the Muggle world is too dangerous – the risk of exposure now is too great. But it doesn't matter, I'm not getting involved. Tom's promised me he will not approach me before I've graduated from Hogwarts. I'm not going to let myself be manipulated into this conflict between him and Dumbledore. I'm fourteen years old! I don't want to fight a war, or be the rallying point to either side, and definitely not against Tom."
They were silent and Harry noticed Ginny rubbing at the bandage around her left forearm.

"Can I see it?"

She looked up.

"The Dark Mark, will you show me?"

Ginny's hand tightened around the bandaging, but she nodded slowly, dropping both hands in her lap. Harry gently unwrapped her arm to reveal the black skull and snake. Ginny looked away and there was a grimace on her face. Harry traced the tattoo with his fingertips; Severus had never let him see his. When Harry didn't say anything, just lightly touched the drawing, Ginny looked down at it as well, watching his fingers.

"You're the first one to not look at it in disgust or pity."

Harry smiled and let Ginny's wrist go, she made no move to cover it up.

"It's a connection to Tom."

"It's ugly; he's branded me for life."

Harry shrugged; there was little he could say to that. "He hasn't used it, has he?"

Ginny shook her head no.

"Every now and then it kind of aches, I have to notify the Headmaster then," she hesitated. "But I don't always, I don't know why. I should – But Tom –"

"I understand." He understood better than anybody else, save maybe Severus. The lure and addiction that was Tom Riddle, his charisma and the way he could make you feel, good or bad. He'd killed Harry's parents but Harry knew he could not hate him for it. It hurt, that betrayal, the lie, but there was no point dwelling on the past. For the next three and a half years he would be free from Tom's influence, free to make up his own mind. With a small smile Harry stood up, his fingers briefly stroking Cassie who was still coiled around his left forearm, her head resting where Severus' and Ginny's Dark Mark were burned.

"I'm going to bed. Don't worry, Ginny, it's all going to turn out okay."

Ginny was wrapping her arm up again. "I wish I shared your optimism, Harry," but there was an upward twist to her lips and her words weren't bitter.

Just as he reached the stairs leading to the Gryffindor fourth year boys' dorm Ginny called out to him. "Harry? Thanks for listening; I'm sorry about my brothers behaviour."

"That's all right. Merry Christmas, Ginny."

"Merry Christmas, Harry."

*~*

There was of course a backlash when the rest of the school found out about Harry's new pet, not to mention the fact he spoke Parseltongue. Whispers behind his back that he was in league with the Dark Lord, that he was just another impostor. Even the Headmaster could not convince the Gryffindors to pick up their attempts to befriend Harry.

Harry didn't mind, he ignored the rumours and innuendo. Instead he concentrated on his classes, on playing Quidditch and the thrill of flying and catching the snitch, on Potions with Severus. He was determined to not get involved, determined to make the most of these few years of unknown and unparalleled freedom, just like Tom wanted him to.

Every now and then he would spend an early morning talking with Ginny in the Gryffindor common room, unbeknownst to her brothers and the rest of the school. Occasionally she'd join him in the library and the small study group he'd set up after forming a few, tentative, friendships with a number of Ravenclaws and Huffelpuffs. She'd tease him that he should have been sorted into Ravenclaw, and Harry agreed. If only Dumbledore had given him some time to calm down, to think, then he wouldn't have let himself so easily be placed in his predecessor's, in his parents' house. But in the end it didn't matter, Harry knew what Dumbledore wanted and he was not going to give it to him; he was not going to become the Headmaster's puppet in the war against Tom. Instead he was going to study and be happy and enjoy himself as long as he could.