Disclaimer: I do not own Harry Potter.


The entire school year Harry spent either studying with Hermione and Ron or conversing with Tom about various aspects of magic. It wasn't until the winter holidays when Ron and Hermione were out of the castle that Harry finally managed to bring up a rather touchy subject to Dumbledore.

The man was sitting behind his desk, eyes twinkling brighter than the stars he studied in astronomy.

"Harry, what would you like to talk about?" And Harry talked.

He told Dumbledore about the meditation and finding a version of Tom in his head that wasn't mad and how he thought that Tom might be able to be saved if they manage to make him reabsorb his horcruxes.

"A rather interesting theory. I don't see why it can't work, but you must be aware that Voldemort reabsorbing the shard of his soul that resides in you could very well kill you." It didn't take long for Harry to respond, since he'd already come to the same conclusion.

"I'm willing to take the risk if it means Tom gets to reverse the mistakes he made." Dumbledore just sat there, eyes twinkling with something akin to pride.

"My boy, you always were too kind to others. I would like to think that Tom would rethink his old ways and continue down a new path, but I just can't help but think that he'll just have a newer and more invigorated body in which to continue on torturing and killing people. What's got you so convinced he won't revert back to thinking the way Voldemort currently does?" Harry thought for quite some time about the question he was just asked. It was more than just a feeling, it was a gut instinct-and those were never wrong where Harry was concerned. The trick was figuring out a way to articulate it.

"I've…grown to…appreciate Tom's more…intricate feelings. If I focus rather hard I almost get echoes of what he's feeling when he talks about certain things. Like different branches of magic, he's always feeling curious about those. And when he talks about what he's done-well, about what his counterpart has done-he feels regret. I know because I feel it too. And I know it's his feelings and not mine because I don't regret the things he's done, I only feel sorrow and pain for the people who had to endure it." Dumbledore heard him out without interrupting.

"While I agree, those do point to the validity of what you're saying he believes, I still think trying to do anything like what you're suggesting is too dangerous. I'll see if I can't find another solution, but for now I simply want you to focus on your studies."

Harry nodded, trying his best to simply look dejected. "Yes, sir." He got up to leave and just as he was about to open the door, Dumbledore stopped him.

"Oh, and Harry?" He turned to face the Headmaster. "My door is always open should you wish to talk further about Tom and his escapades." Harry nodded and practically shot through the doorway.

He managed to find himself in his dorm room rather quickly and instead of sleeping, simply started meditating.

Tom greeted him with a cup of tea already prepared.

"So, tell me how your first day back has gone." Harry recounted the train ride, the excitement at seeing the castle again, and even told Tom about his meeting with Dumbledore after dinner.

"I see. Well, he never did trust me. I don't see why he'd suddenly start now." Harry glared at the wall. "Why are you making that face?"

"He doesn't trust me either. He says he does, but he's always discounting my thoughts, worries and even takes my ideas and just says he'll find a way to make a better plan. It's like I'm never good enough to let him trust me, but I'm good enough to save the entire world from certain destruction? If that's the case, why not even hear me out? What's the point in being the saviour if coming up with a way to save everyone is never good enough?"

"Harry, I want you to listen to me very carefully. People like Dumbledore like being the center of attention which means in cases like this, he knows you'll be getting more attention than him when the time comes to kill Voldemort-so the next best thing is to say he came up with the plan you followed through with. Dumbledore is not a bad man, but he is quite narcissistic. Quite frankly, I liked your idea. I think it needs some more hashing out, but that can easily be remedied." Harry didn't think he'd ever felt more validated in his entire life than he did right now.

The two talked for hours on the finer points of manipulating horcruxes out of one container and into another-in this case, into Harry. Tom, being the largest piece, would absorb them quite quickly. He insisted that Harry not start the process until after his coming of age, but did agree that he'd tell Harry about the protections on the horcruxes and would start teaching him how to undo those enchantments and curses.

Harry meditated until well into Saturday morning; a blessing, as Ron would likely be sleeping for the next few hours and would let him catch a few hours of sleep before needing to get up for the day. After all, classes didn't start until Monday.


Classes were brutal. It was only fourth year, but every single time Harry thought he'd maybe gotten the basics down to a concept they'd moved onto the next one. For some reason he was having a harder time concentrating on the things around him-even meditation was getting harder to do. It got better on the weekends when he spent all of his time in the common room studying to catch up until, finally, Tom snapped at him.

"Exactly why haven't you talked to me all week?"

"Huh?"

"It's been an entire week and you haven't so much as said 'hello' are you avoiding me?"

"N-no!" And Harry found himself spilling all of his troubles to Tom. His lack of understanding in classes, the inability he was having to study outside of the common room, even the weird glances Ginny had been giving him lately.

"Ah, I see. Do you eat when you study in the common room?" Harry took a moment to think about it, but ultimately nodded.

"Yeah, Dobby brings me food when I ask for it. Why?"

"I'm wondering if someone is drugging your food with a mild confusion potion. Usually, over time, this tends to make the drinker more susceptible to advances from unlikely suitors without being illegal. But if you're not exposed to it regularly, it's like starting from square one every single time you're reintroduced to it. Ginny…she's the one that wrote in the diary, yes?" Harry nodded. "She did have a rather intense crush on you in her first year…I wonder if she's got anything to do with it. If she does, she'd need to see a mind healer to work through her obsessions."

"Tom, not everyone is as manipulative as you can be." Tom agreed, but still had Harry promise to think about the possibility. Harry didn't meditate again for the rest of the weekend.

What he did do, was watch Ginny the next Monday morning from under his invisibility cloak. She woke up and went down to breakfast earlier than Harry, Ron and Hermione usually do, walked right up to Harry's usual spot and held her hand over the pitcher of pumpkin juice.

Harry was the only one that drank pumpkin juice in the mornings-everyone else reached for coffee or tea.

He left the Great Hall, took off the cloak and stuffed it into his bag, and went to eat breakfast. He poured himself a cup of pumpkin juice and grabbed a slice of toast.

"Hi Harry, where are you going?"

"Hey Ginny-I've got loads of homework left to do, so I'm eating on the way to the library. See you later!" He high tailed it out of there and went straight to the infirmary.

"Madame Pomfrey?" Said woman came bustling out of her office.

"Oh goodness, just what have you been getting into this time?" Harry told her how he'd been feeling quite behind in classes but it was only on the days that he ate in the Great Hall, told her what he saw and handed over the glass of juice.

"I just want to be sure that I'm overreacting. I don't really think anyone would be trying to hurt me, but I'm rather worried about my grades." She gave him a serious look and told him she'd be right back before disappearing to her office.

Not five minutes later she was back and telling him to get comfortable; he wasn't leaving her ward for at least a day. There was a confusion potion in the pumpkin juice.

He later found out from Ron and Hermione that Professor McGonagall had escorted Ginny from the Great Hall halfway through breakfast and hadn't returned to classes. It was lunchtime before Ron and his brothers were told that she would be spending an indefinite amount of time with the mind healers at St. Mungo's for a mental ailment. Harry felt bad and apologised to Ron after telling him what happened, and Ron paled.

"Don't be sorry mate, she clearly needs the help if she was willing to risk your health and grades just to look twice at her. She's been obsessing over you for years. I think the healers will do her a world of good."

That night, whilst laying in his designated hospital wing bed, Harry meditated and told Tom everything that had transpired that day. Tom looked a bit smug, but also concerned for Harry's wellbeing and talked highly of Madame Pomfrey for keeping him overnight. For the first time since school had started, Harry went to sleep at a normal time and woke up feeling refreshed and ready for the day with a clear head.

Madame Pomfrey was elated he felt so well so quickly and sent him on his way.


Harry's school year went by incredibly smoothly after that. He'd finish classes, go to his room to meditate for an hour while Tom explained anything that didn't make sense during the day, and do homework until it was time for dinner. After that, he was beating even Hermione in how quickly his work was getting done-although that might have more to do with how she always seemed to double the homework lengths professors gave them and he didn't. It was nice to not have to worry about an essay being due in three days because it was already done.

Hermione insisted they get through the practising for Occlumency and Legilimency as soon as possible, and Harry obliged. She was soon shocked to realise that not only could she not get into Harry's mind, she couldn't even get near it. Harry, on the other hand, couldn't force his way into her mind, but he could worm his way in if he was trying to be subtle about it. She could kick him out after a few moments, but he quickly told her they needed to stop after the first time he saw Ron and her doing all too much for him to be comfortable with.

She turned the colour of beets and agreed before swiftly changing the subject.