Year 6: Chapter Six
Once aboard the train, Neville disappeared in search of Hannah and Susan, while the rest claimed a compartment for themselves. Hermione and Ron left soon after to tend to their Prefect duties, leaving Tom with Ginny and Luna. Luna promptly slid to the corner, legs curled up against her chest, and started reading a muggle fantasy novel she'd obtained from seemingly nowhere. Tom glanced at Ginny, who shrugged, and stood. "I need to speak with Greengrass," he said. "I'll be back shortly."
Ginny flipped him a cheeky salute and spread out across the seats. "Good luck," she said. Her mood through the bond remained elated, as it had been since she'd woken and found her mother restored.
Tom wondered if this bubbly feeling in his chest was what it felt like to do a good deed. It wasn't entirely unpleasant.
He'd only just stepped toward the door when it slammed open and a tiny blonde Ravenclaw blocked the entrance. "Potter!" she barked, arms crossed and head lifted imperiously, "You Marked my sister!"
Tom blinked. Her coloring and general body structure lent her a passing resemblance to Daphne Greengrass (though she also looked quite a bit like Luna, so Tom wondered how closely the two families might be related). Given that she wore Ravenclaw colors, it seemed reasonable to assume that this was Astoria Greengrass. Still, she hadn't announced herself, which was just rude. "And who would that be?" Tom drawled, settling back down into his seat.
The blonde frowned. "Daphne," she said shortly.
Tom smiled. "Ah, then you must be the lovely Miss Astoria Greengrass? A pleasure to meet you."
Astoria glared at him for a moment, then huffed and shifted her weight to one side, resting her hand on her hip as she said, "Right, right. It's nice to meet you, Heir Potter, and thank you for whatever some ancestor of yours did for some ancestor of mine, and don't forget that time some member of my family helped out some member of your family, and isn't the weather lovely." She crossed her arms again. "There, pleasantries observed. Now, the Mark. Can you remove it?"
"Yes," Tom said slowly, processing the vast difference between this girl and the Greengrass daughter he knew. "But I don't intend to."
At his admission of the possibility, Astoria's face lit up, only to darken as he finished speaking. She chewed on her lip for a moment before nodding to herself. "Right then, well I take back her request for a favor, so you can take back the Mark."
Tom snorted. "It's not your request to take back. If you want it done so badly, convince Daphne to ask me."
At this, the blonde's lower lip jutted out in an impressive pout. "I tried that, but she's so stubborn." She slid into the seat next to him and pressed herself against his arm. "Please, Heir Potter? I don't really need the help, but I do need my sister to be free."
Tom could feel Luna and Ginny's amusement through the bond. He pursed his lips and pushed Astoria away. "No," he stressed.
Again, her expression changed, this time becoming sultry as she pushed her arms together to enhance her bust. "Daphne told me you've been making some kind of harem. She's really stressed about it, because she thinks you're going to add her and make her act subservient to the rest of your wives, but you know," she told him in a breathy sort of voice, "I'm way better than Daphne. I know how to do all kinds of things that she'd never even consider."
Now Tom had to stare, because was that really an attempt to guilt him into doing what she wanted mixed into the same sentence as an attempt to appeal to his hormones? What was this girl doing in Ravenclaw?
Luna spoke up before he could. "I don't believe we'd decided to make Daphne join, but if you're so eager, I don't see why we shouldn't take you instead," she said. "Shall we perform the ritual now?"
That took Astoria by surprise. "Don't we need Daphne?"
Luna shook her head and cocked it to the side curiously. "Whyever should we? The magic is tied to Harry Potter's body, after all."
Astoriua hesitated, rubbing her arm absently, before forcing a carefree smile onto her face. "Now's fine, I believe. What ingredients do we need?"
With a completely innocent expression, Luna began instructing the girl on the process while Ginny sighed and started setting up the circle in their compartment, not even bothering to complain about the inconvenience of the location. Tom noticed that Luna never actually said what ritual they were performing, and he wondered if Astoria even knew that this had nothing to do with the Mark on her sister's arm.
For his part, he wondered if Luna had seen som change in his… aura or whatever it was she was looking at when she monitored his progression with the bonds. He should have needed another process before adding the last ingredient. Luna wouldn't sabotage this though, so he had to assume she knew what she was doing.
Ten minutes later, he concluded that Astoria hadn't known, as his last bond settled into place and his partner in the ritual examined her arm cautiously, a sense of growing concern forming as she found nothing.
Astoria looked up, expression thunderous. "Where is it?"
Tom cocked his head to the side. "Where's what?" he asked as though he hadn't already figured it out. Mostly, he was marveling at how much less the ritual affected him now than it had with Severus.
"The Mark!" she said with a stamp of her foot.
Luna took the opportunity to answer this one. "Oh, there's no ritual for that. This was the ritual to bind you to him and make you a member of his harem so you could serve the rest of us." She patted the seat next to her. "Now come here and let me use you as a pillow, Stori."
The younger girl looked aghast. "What? But you -" Her lower lip trembled as she realized her mistake. "Aren't you going to take away Daphne's Mark?" she asked in a small voice.
Tom shrugged. "Only if she wants me to." He frowned at the girl. "Did you even ask her about it?" He was fairly certain Daphne didn't think he was forming a harem, and she definitely didn't feel concerned that he'd add her to it.
Astoria sat down next to Luna in a daze. "No," she admitted, shaking her head. "Daphne said… She said that everything was fine… But of course she'd say that! She's always trying to downplay things so I don't worry, but it just makes me worry more!"
Ginny gave the girl a pitying smile. "If it makes you feel better, we were going to ask your sister to convince you to do this ritual anyway, so you've saved us, and her, some time at least."
"What? Why?" Astoria asked with a frown. "I mean, I know I'm… well… not actually very interesting… like that… I mean, I'm so flat and I don't even…" Her voice got quieter and quieter until Tom couldn't hear what she was saying at all. Perhaps she realized this, because she shook herself and raised her voice back to a normal speaking volume. "So why would you go out of your way to get me to join your harem?"
"For Morgana's sake, Greengrass, it's not a harem!" Tom snapped, finally having had enough. He glared at Luna, who gave him a cheery wave. "Since you're a part of the group now," he stressed, trying to impress upon her how very much not a harem it was, "I may as well explain so you can stop with these ridiculous ideas. Harry Potter was Kissed by a dementor. I'm actually named Tom Riddle, a shard of a soul that was contained within him. Because I'm not in my own body, my soul's attachment is unstable, and I need to perform this ritual to keep myself from dying. That's all."
Astoria blinked at him. Several seconds passed, then she paled and looked faint. "You're the Dark Lord?" she asked. Without waiting for an answer, she shook her head. "No, you said a shard of a soul, so you would be just a fragment of him. Is that why he didn't stay dead? He scattered fragments of himself about?" She glanced at him and nodded to herself. "But why are you going along with – oh, I suppose the Dark Lord would hardly welcome a self-aware soul phylactery made over a decade ago. By now you're sure to have become separate enough that you wouldn't necessarily work together seamlessly, making you more of a risk than an ally." Her lips twisted as she considered this. "But that still doesn't explain why Potter's friends are working with you. They seem too at ease for it to be an act, and I can't imagine they haven't realized, especially if the Weaslette knows." She paused, then clapped her hands together in realization. "Oh! You promised them to get Potter back, didn't you? That would do it, possibly. I can't think what else would." She nodded. "And that's why Daphne thinks you can help me. Alright, I'm okay with this."
Tom's eyebrows rose. So perhaps she was a Ravenclaw after all. "Mostly correct, but your sister was counting on my fame and wealth to get others to save you. She doesn't know my true identity."
"Oh." Astoria wrinkled her nose. "There's always something. So it's a secret from her? Who else knows?"
Ginny rolled her eyes. "It's not a very well-kept secret by this point, to be honest. Mostly we're trying to keep the information away from Dumbledore and Voldemort." Her brows furrowed. "Aren't we? Or do we care if Voldemort knows?"
Tom shrugged. "I'd prefer if he didn't yet, because I want to enjoy the moment he realizes what I am, but it's not terribly important at this point. Really, so long as I have a warning, I would be fine even if Dumbledore found out." He glared at Luna, who was the one most likely to betray his identity through her refusal to call him Harry Potter. "Even so, if that information leaks to him, I will find the source of that leak, and they will wish I only wanted to kill them. I've waited more than half a century to watch him fall into despair. No one is allowed to take that from me."
Everyone was silent for a moment, then Luna started to speak. "Have you really–"
She didn't get to finish, because Hermione and Ron arrived. Ron threw himself into a seat, only pausing for half a second upon noticing Astoria. He looked between her and Luna, shrugged, and leaned his head back, eyes closed. "Being a Prefect is so. Very. Boring," he groaned. "Even Malfoy doesn't enjoy it anymore."
Hermione sniffed. "It's an important job," she said, then smiled at Astoria. "Did you complete the ritual then? I thought I felt something through the bond."
Astoria nodded, hesitantly at first, then again more confidently. "Yeah. We did." She blinked. "Wait, so are you still going to marry my sister? Or did that move over to me?"
Before anyone could answer that (and as Tom realized belatedly that he wasn't sure if he'd properly disabused the elder Greengrass sister of the notion that she'd be marrying him), a knock sounded at the door. They opened it to find a third-year girl bearing an envelope. "This is for you," she said, then hurried off in a rush.
Tom barely glanced at his letter, recognizing it from his original Hogwarts years. "I suppose I should go take care of this," he sighed. "I'll be back in an hour or so."
When he reached Slughorn's compartment, he found Neville standing outside it with Susan looking a little confused and more than a little wary. Tom nodded to them and said, "It's from our new Potions professor. He likes to collect people he expects will have some manner of power in the future."
At this, Susan just looked resigned, while Neville scrunched up his nose but nodded with a sigh. "Alright, let's go then, I guess." He rubbed the bird charm around his neck absently as they headed into Slughorn's compartment. Noticing, Tom took a moment to consider it, wondering if it was just unconscious worrying at a foreign piece of jewelry or if perhaps it was Bella's presence specifically that his subconscious was seeking out. It was almost certainly the former, but on the off chance it wasn't, he resolved to add some enchantments to the chain that would reinforce the behavior. If Neville became attached to Bella, it would surely lead to interesting results, he thought, and without Umbridge's death to plot, he needed something to keep himself occupied.
Inside, they found Slughorn entertaining several other students already. From one corner, Zabini gave them a disinterested glance that managed to convey how boring he found it all. "Harry, m'boy!" Slughorn called upon noticing the trio. "Good to see you, good to see you! And you must be Mr. Longbottom and Miss Bones!" He performed the introductions, though Tom already knew most of the students in here, then proceeded to feel out his guests to determine how many of those present were likely to become worthwhile investments.
Neville and Tom bore with it, as did Susan and Zabini, until it was time to leave. When they at last left the compartment, they split up, Susan going with Neville while Zabini followed Tom. "My mother's been receiving all manner of guests lately," the boy said after a moment, looking for all the world like he was only talking to himself. "A number of them have been from the darker families. Curiously, they all seem to be trying to convince her to share her wealth with a certain recently resurrected man." Zabini glanced at Tom from the corner of his eye. "I wonder if it would be worthwhile for her to ally herself with this man. So far, she's remained neutral, as our family always has, but if I were to advise her otherwise, I'm sure I could convince her to break that neutrality. She could gain information that other people might find useful."
Tom shook his head slightly at the teen's attempts at subterfuge. It was hard to tell if Slytherin cunning had declined or if Tom had simply forgotten how very childish teenagers could be. "Appreciated, but no. Someone recently recruited would be able to provide very little information, as he is unlikely to trust any but his most fanatical followers."
Zabini shrugged, dropping the act. "Thought I'd offer," he said. "I have something I need to speak with you about privately, if you don't mind coming back to my compartment with me."
"That's fine," Tom said.
Zabini led Tom back to his own compartment, where Davis and Bulstrode sat. He glanced around. "Where'd Daphne go?" he asked.
Davis laughed. "She heard a rumor that Stori was searching for Potter and went to catch her. She find you, Potter?"
"She did," Tom confirmed. "What did you need?" he asked Zabini.
"Not me," the boy said. He gestured to Bulstrode.
The tall girl winced as she sat up straighter, and Tom saw she was trembling. He took her hand and watched the way it shook, then cast a quick series of diagnostic spells. "Cruciatus," he said more than asked.
Bulstrode nodded. "The Dark Lord spent the summer with us. He - he killed my mother and… He made my father do this to me." Her lips pressed together hard enough to turn white in the effort to maintain her composure. "Father, he told me not to come home. And he said that - that probably, he'll kill him too, before the Sorting's even over and - and -" That was, apparently, too much, and a choked sob broke out of her throat before she managed to swallow it down.
Tom's eyes narrowed. "Why would Voldemort kill your father? What did he do?"
Bulstrode shook her head. "I don't know," she said miserably. "He said something about that - that giant bloody fucking snake he keeps with him, but he didn't explain anything. Just said 'that snake needs to go,' and I guess that means he plans to kill it, but why would he - why would he be willing to die for the sake of killing the Dark Lord's familiar?"
Tom had gone very still as she spoke. If Nagini was dead, then perhaps the horcruxes were the process, which would mean that one of the other two had been destroyed over the summer. Which one? The ring or the cup? He grit his teeth, realizing he should have made time to check on the ring.
Zabini was talking, he realized after a moment. "-for your mother, possibly. My mother's had to do quite a bit of cleanup on occasion when loved ones of her ex-husbands have decided to get revenge." He flashed a quick smile toward Tom. "It was misdirected vengeance, of course. Mother says that sometimes people just want someone to blame."
Tom smiled back blandly. Elvira had once commissioned him to rid her of an Auror husband. He'd declined, of course, because Lord Voldemort couldn't be seen as some sort of common mercenary, but if the Auror happened to end up dead around the time she offered up a very interesting journal… Well, stranger coincidences had happened.
He switched his attention back to Bulstrode. "I can ask Sirius if you can come stay with us, or you could join Malfoy and his mother. I don't think Sirius would be willing to let you stay at any of the other properties without supervision, but I could also ask Auror Tonks if her parents would be willing to host you. The Weasley twins are also an option, though you'd likely have to work at their shop."
Bulstrode nodded. "I'll think it over and let you know," she said. "Thank you, Potter," she said after a moment. "I… You're going to kill him, right?"
Or close enough to it, Tom thought, but he only gave her a firm nod.
The girl exhaled slowly and closed her eyes. "Good. I hope you make him suffer. If there's anything I can do to make it happen sooner, let me know."
Tom smiled. "Of course," he agreed. "It would be my pleasure." If he said this a little too eagerly, no one commented. They were Slytherins, after all. "Be sure to visit Professor Snape as soon as the Sorting Feast is over, or sooner if you can manage. The aftereffects of Cruciatus exposure end faster the sooner you receive treatment."
The door slammed open. "Potter!" Daphne snarled. "You bound my sister!"
"Was that a bad thing?" he asked curiously. "I thought you knew I planned to."
"I also told you I wanted to be there for anything you did with her!"
Oh. She had said something like that, now that he thought about it. He wondered why Hermione hadn't reminded him, but perhaps the girl hadn't realized he'd put her in charge of minor minutia like that. "Sorry," he said insincerely. "I forgot."
The Slytherin girl let out an inarticulate kind of scream and threw herself into the seat next to Bulstrode. "Tell me you've at least agreed to sort out Millie's housing. My parents already said no." She snagged a Chocolate Frog and tore into it. "Why can't she just believe me when I tell her something? How in Morgana did she get the idea I was being forced into some subservient harem situation?"
Considering that Severus was one of his bonded, Tom would like to know the answer to that question as well.
Davis looked away.
"Tracey?" Daphne growled. "What did you do?"
The brunette laughed nervously. "I… may have been teasing her. I didn't think she'd take it so seriously."
Tom cast an overpowered Stinging Hex at her chest. She failed to dodge, breaking into a stream of curses, and Tom made a mental note to make everyone dodge hexes until they'd caught back up.
After that, Tom returned to his compartment to find Astoria asleep with Luna and Hermione's feet across her lap, Ron busily scratching out last-minute revisions to his summer homework, and Ginny reading a book he vaguely remembered Hermione going through the year before. It was something about wizarding traditions and customs. Not something a pureblood would usually read, but the Weasley children likely had never been taught any of it. He slid in next to her. "Did you have fun with Daphne?" he asked.
Ginny wrinkled her nose at him. "Ugh. She seems way more uptight this year."
Tom hummed agreeably and started in on his own book. "Nagini may be dead," he commented quietly.
Ginny gasped. "What? How? When? How do you know?" At this, both Hermione and Luna looked up, while Ron's head tilted their way slightly, an indication he was listening as well.
Tom explained what he'd learned from Bulstrode. He grimaced. "I assume one of the processes has been completed?" he asked Luna.
The blonde nodded. "This makes it highly likely that one of your other horcruxes was destroyed over the summer. Do you think the ring or the cup is more likely?"
"The ring, definitely," Ginny interjected. "Bellatrix obviously hasn't retrieved the cup, and Gringotts takes protecting the vaults far too seriously to allow it to have gotten destroyed by accident."
Tom nodded. "That was my conclusion as well." He sighed. "Unfortunately, that means Dumbledore is the most likely culprit and, given the timing of that and Severus's odd burst of emotion, he likely was forced to help in some manner, then sworn to secrecy."
Hermione shook her head. "Professor Snape wouldn't betray you like that!" she said, then added, softer, "None of us would."
"Nor could he, given the contents of his oaths to me," Tom agreed, "but if he believed that agreeing would be more beneficial to me than refusing, and thus not a true betrayal, he may still have done so." Really, given that Luna could see whether or not the next process had been completed, it hardly mattered if Severus could tell him or not. The only issue was the minor irritation of having believed they were wrong about the horcruxes' destruction being the necessary process.
Of course, he still intended to find some suitable punishment. He had to be careful with Severus, since he didn't want to connect himself with Voldemort too strongly in the man's mind, but he also could hardly let the deception pass without comment. "Hermione, I'd like you to design some mild form of punishment for him," he said. "Just to let him know I'm not pleased about it, but not so much as to make him think I'm truly angry." He could, of course, decide on something himself, but he was curious what Hermione would decide upon.
The girl in question looked troubled, but after worrying at her lower lip for a moment, she nodded. "Alright," she said. "I suppose it'd be better that way anyway." She cast a doubtful glance in his direction as she said it, clearly thinking his definition of 'mild' would be anything but.
By the time the Hogwarts Express pulled into Hogsmeade Station, Hermione still hadn't decided on anything. They woke Astoria, who followed them into their carriage for the ride up to school. "You don't want to go with your friends?" Hermione asked curiously.
The Ravenclaw shrugged and shook her head. "The only people in my year who talk to me are the people who want a connection to the Greengrass family." She didn't look bothered by it. Seeing Hermione's obvious concern though, Astoria smiled faintly. "I don't talk to them either. I don't have anything in common with them, so there's nothing to say."
Tom thought that sounded like a remarkably self-deluding statement, but he wasn't about to try to stop her.
As they began the Sorting Ceremony and waited for the feast to begin, Tom considered his current situation. All the bonds had been completed, so next he would be either performing the second step for Luna, Bellatrix, and Astoria, or the third step for Severus, Hermione, and Ginny. He rather hoped it was the former… but then again, asking him to trust Bellatrix, who was insane, or Astoria, whom he'd only just met, seemed a bit much as well. Perhaps it would be better to focus on getting Bella to retrieve the cup. Finishing with the first stages of the ritual might be enough that he could get by without performing the next stages for a while longer.
Additionally, once he'd done that, he could perform the ritual to ask for divine assistance. Although he found the idea that any sort of divinity could exist, let alone be convinced to provide him with immortality, absurd, he doubted that whatever magic guided Luna's sight would have suggested it without reason. If it could lead him to even a hint of an answer to the problem of death, he'd consider it worthwhile.
After the feast, Dumbledore said his customary speech, to which he'd added warnings about Voldemort, and Tom eyed the man's gloved hands with vague irritation.
"What's the matter?" Hermione asked, only half listening as she tried to pay attention to the Headmaster..
Tom shook his head. "Those gloves are just… Is he trying to look even more ridiculous than usual, or has his sense of fashion just gotten even worse?"
Hermione and Ginny both turned to study the golden, sequinned monstrosities. The sequins appeared to have been charmed to flash different colors, and as they watched, the gold shifted to an almost violent shade of purple. Both girls grimaced slightly. Hermione bit her lip and tried, "Well, it's certainly distracting… Perhaps he's trying to keep everyone from panicking?"
Tom scoffed and pushed himself up from the table. He forced Dumbledore from his mind with the ease of long practice and waved to the new students. "First years, this way," he said. At Hermione's questioning glance, he smiled. "Shall we?"
Together, they led the crowd of eleven-year-old witches and wizards up the many flights of stairs to Gryffindor Tower. A quiet word to Ron and Ginny saw them trailing behind the group to help any stragglers. Climbing so many stairs was tiring, and there were years when a student or two ended up getting lost after falling behind.
"You're not a Prefect," Hermione commented.
Tom shrugged. "Are Prefects the only ones allowed to be helpful?"
Once inside the Gryffindor Common Room, Hermione directed the first years to their dorms after letting them know that she'd be in the Common Room at seven the next morning to lead them back to the Great Hall. Once the children were safely in their rooms, Tom led the way up to the sixth-year boys' dorm, where he stopped short.
McGonagall stood there, face pinched. Her gaze drifted over to Hermione and Ginny. The former shifted nervously, while the latter lifted her chin and held the woman's stare. McGonagall sighed. "For whatever reason, the Headmaster seems to believe it to be for the best that your sleeping arrangements be allowed to continue. I would like to reiterate, however, that they had best remain just sleeping arrangements." Her eyes narrowed as she looked at Tom. "If I hear even the slightest whisper that you've been abusing this privilege, it will be removed."
Tom looked at her blankly, entirely certain she had the wrong idea about their relationship but unable to explain it properly without context that would make things even worse.
Then she sighed, expression softening ever so slightly. "Your parents did much the same in their seventh year," she admitted. "I allowed it then with the same conditions as I am allowing it now."
Tom wondered if Harry Potter would like knowing that about his parents. Most likely, he decided. The boy in his memories seemed to be hungry for any scrap of information about Lily and James Potter, no matter the content or source, though the Dursley's had done a thorough job of training him out of asking questions. "Thank you, Professor," Tom said with a smile.
The other boys barely noticed the girls at this point. Neville nodded to them, and Ron chatted idly as everyone set their things in place for another year. Dean looked mildly unsettled, apparently having spent the summer resensitizing himself to Tom's identity, and Finnegan amused himself with some muggle comics Dean brought him. As they settled in for the night, Hermione said suddenly, "Lines."
Tom and Ginny looked at her. "Lines?" Tom asked curiously.
The girl flushed but nodded. "Professor Snape's punishment. He should have to write lines."
Ginny raised her eyebrow skeptically. "Do you really think that will be effective?"
Hermione nodded confidently. "Of course. Not the lines themselves, of course, but being given a child's punishment should be demeaning enough that he will think twice about repeating the offense."
Tom considered it and nodded slowly. "Very well. You will inform him that you'll be overseeing his 'detention' Friday night." He smiled at Hermione's aghast look, not even bothering to conceal his amusement. "I think writing 'I will avoid situations that lead to deceiving my master' two hundred times will be sufficient."
"I can't do that!" Hermione exclaimed. "He's - he's my teacher!"
"...and?" Tom asked, smirking. "Being forced to obey a student will make the punishment far more onerous."
Hermione scowled. "That's true, I guess, but…"
Ginny sighed. "Can we just get to sleep? You know he's going to win this argument." She grinned cheekily up at her friend. "Besides, you can't deny it'd be fun to order Professor Snape around a bit. You could tell him that Tom said he had to obey you, and I'll bet he'd listen."
Tom nodded. "I'll tell him tomorrow morning that he should obey you as he would me," he said, earning a smirk from Ginny and a betrayed look from Hermione. "Seriously," he said, humor gone from his tone, "You are my second-in-command, Hermione. You should act like it."
Hermione froze, wide-eyed. "I'm what?"
Tom gave her a cool look and shifted to his usual position against the headboard, pulling out some parchment and a quill and using a book as a surface to write against. "My second-in-command," he told her. "Or right-hand man, if you prefer, but you're rather female." Without allowing her to respond, he turned his mind firmly to the task of writing the Australian Center for Unorthodox Research. He wanted to read through the experiment they performed, but he'd never gotten it back from Umbridge. The woman had probably burned the pages anyway.
In the morning, Tom woke before anyone else and extricated himself from the bed carefully. Then he went straight to Severus's quarters, wearing his Invisibility Cloak as it was still a bit too early to be wandering the halls. He raised his fist to knock, only to find the door opening on its own. Tom blinked and stepped inside warily. He didn't see anyone, and nothing seemed amiss. He checked the bedroom, but there was no sign of the man.
"Master?" Severus's voice came from behind him.
Tom spun, wand coming to his hand automatically and heart beating far too quickly. Severus was stepping into the room, hair wet and skin flushed, a towel slung around his waist. Tom closed his eyes, willing his heart rate back to normal. "You startled me," he accused.
"I see that," Severus replied, moving to get dressed.
Tom frowned at the man's back. "Why aren't your rooms locked?"
"You'll enter anyway," Severus said as he pulled his robes on. "So I altered the wards to automatically allow you entrance."
Tom frowned. "Alright then," he said after considering it for a moment. While he quite enjoyed the challenge of breaking through Severus's wards, he supposed it was inconvenient. He shrugged off the matter. "I've given Hermione a task. You will obey her for its duration," he said.
Severus turned so quickly that water spattered from his still-wet hair. "What?" he demanded. "Why?"
Tom ignored the questions and continued to the next point on his itinerary. "Did Bulstrode come to you last night?"
Severus glowered at him, but nodded jerkily. "Yes."
"Good," Tom said. "Finally, sometime during my original Hogwarts' career, I was Obliviated. I would like your assistance in retrieving the memories, if possible, and determining the caster if not."
Although the bond said that Severus was still angry about Tom's order, his expression quickly turned pensive. "Given your unique circumstances, it could, theoretically, be possible," he mused. "But again, your circumstances are unique, so there's no precedent. It may be even more dangerous than retrieving memories from the average witch or wizard."
Tom nodded. "I'm aware, but now that I'm aware of it, I can hardly leave it be."
Severus sighed heavily and nodded. No Slytherin could fail to understand that need. "When would you prefer to do this?" he asked. "Though the flow of time is different within the mind, you will likely be tired afterwards. I recommend waiting until the weekend."
Tom grimaced. "I've lived with this all summer, Severus. I want to do it now, if possible."
His servant opened his mouth to protest, but closed it again silently, likely realizing that Tom wasn't in the mood to respond to reason. He nodded and rubbed his forehead tiredly. "Very well. Sit, look at me, and try to relax your shields."
Several minutes passed. Tom watched as Severus prodded at his memories, identifying the difference between those stored by Potter's mind and those stored within Tom's soul. Then Tom offered up the trains of thought that had led to the realization that he'd been Obliviated.
A moment and an eternity later, Severus withdrew from his mind looking ill, and Tom stared at him.
Severus swallowed. "Master, you -"
"I will see you in class," Tom said abruptly and left, ignoring Severus's attempts to speak. He passed through the halls in a daze.
He remembered thinking that if he ever felt as much emotion as some of the girls did that he'd Obliviate it rather than endure it. The irony. A laugh forced its way out of his mouth and he stopped for a moment, shook himself, and continued toward the Great Hall.
Luna stood outside. She held out her hand, and Tom took it and let her lead him outside instead. She sat down beside the lake and pulled him down beside her. "You remembered," she said quietly.
Tom's head jerked in her direction. "You knew?" He meant to sound demanding, but he just sounded lost.
Luna shook her head, lips twisting unhappily. "I know you Obliviated yourself, and based on the context, I thought the missing memories related to sex. From there, it's all inference but…" She smiled awkwardly, her grip on his hand tightening. It's not hard to guess what sexual activity would cause someone to Obliviate themselves. She left it unsaid. Tom appreciated that.
"Myrtle Warren," he said abruptly.
Luna blinked her large blue eyes at him and nodded slowly. "That does make sense of some things."
Tom stared blankly at the lake. He was Occluding, but still he felt overwhelmed by waves of panic and revulsion and hatred and fury and self-loathing and an urgent sense that he'd fallen out of his reality and was accelerating toward oblivion. He rubbed at his neck, the feeling of discovering the marks she'd left there suddenly as fresh in his mind as when it'd first happened. "She was pregnant. I killed -" He cut off, unable to say it. "She used a love potion," he said instead, feeling sick.
Beside him, Luna said nothing and didn't move any closer. She was trembling, and Tom realized distantly that she could feel everything he was feeling, and that it must be hurting her terribly, but he couldn't bring himself to care.
"Tom?"
Of course. The others would have felt his current state as well. He looked up to find Ginny and Hermione standing there, both looking shaken. Astoria stood behind them, shaking almost as badly as Luna. He froze. He couldn't - Luna was one thing. She'd already known, sort of. He didn't have to explain. And Ginny might be tolerable, and he didn't much care one way or another about Astoria, but Hermione... She'd want to know every detail. She'd want him to talk through things, and she'd want to offer comfort, and she'd probably look up every book she could find that was even remotely related so she do everything right and all Tom wanted to do was Obliviate himself again, but that would just mean eventually repeating this series of events and finding out all over again and feeling this again and he just couldn't.
He stood. "Don't," he ordered Luna. He looked at the others. "Leave me alone today," he said shortly, the best he could manage just now. He returned to the castle and went to class and spoke to no one and pretended he didn't feel like tearing off his skin.
Author's Note: Took away my daughter's pacifier. What is sleep?
