Unchosen Fate

Tom was sitting on the edge of the fountain, his eyes on the ground.

'Are you here to give me my answer?' He said as he heard Harry approaching, still focused on the ground.

'A deal is a deal,' replied calmly Harry. 'You wanted to know why I can speak Parseltongue, I owe it to you.'

'Me?'

'The night you tried to kill me, the curse rebounded and hit you back. I stayed alive but I gained some of your powers that night.'

'I still don't understand,' said Tom while frowning a little.

Harry sighed and proceeded to explain how the sacrifice of his mother had granted him a protection so powerful even the Death Curse couldn't break it. Tom processed it, and chuckled. So, this is why he had failed. Because of the love of a mother.

'What's so funny?' Asked Harry.

'Nothing. I just find it ironic that what destroyed me was the very thing I have always lacked. I don't know, I guess Fate has a strange sense of humor.'

He sighed and looked at Harry. He wasn't trying to conceal his sadness anymore.

'I took some time to think about what we discussed yesterday,' he continued. 'To a certain point I guess you were right.'

'To a certain point?'

'As I said, Myrtle didn't deserve to die, but my father…'

'I understand.'

'Do you?'

'He betrayed you,' started Harry. 'When I learned about the wizard who betrayed my parents and gave Voldemort the information of where they lived, I also wanted to kill. I wanted to destroy him, I wanted everything about him gone. If I hadn't been stopped, I can't say for sure I would have spared him.'

They looked at each other in silence. There was no animosity in their eyes.

'I was so sure of myself then,' said Tom. 'I was convinced there was no light or dark…'

'Only power and those too weak to seek it,' finished Harry with a smile.

Tom narrowed his eyes.

'How often have we met since you came back to the Wizarding World?'

Harry proceeded to explain to him their first encounter in front of the Philosopher's Stone. He then moved forward to his second year. Without noticing it he started to add details to his story. His third year could have been more relaxing if his godfather hadn't escaped to seek revenge. Then there had been the Triwizard Tournament and the plot that led him to participate against his will.

'So he's back?' Said Tom when Harry was done.

"He?" They were making progress then.

'Didn't you mea, you're back?' asked Harry mischievously.

'You are annoying, do you know that?' Replied Tom. 'I knew that the creation of Horcruxes was a way to preserve myself, but I was also aware it would divide my soul. I… I just wanted revenge against those who harmed me. I wanted to make sure that time wouldn't stop me.' He looked into Harry's eyes. 'The last thing I remember is the creation of the Horcrux with the diadem of Ravenclaw. Everything that happened then is a bit blurry. Like a book with missing pages. But if you tell me that I have become the kind of person willing to kill a baby to protect my power…' he shook his head. 'Then it means I wasn't able to control myself in the end.'

Harry sat a few inches from Tom and they both contemplated the diadem.

'What did you mean when you said you gain some of Voldemort's power the night he tried to murder you?' Asked Tom after a few seconds of silence.

'Nothing more than that,' replied Harry. 'Nobody really knows how it happened. The cruse gave me this scar,' he explained while pointing towards his forehead, 'and I inherited some of his powers.'

'That's not right,' he muttered. 'Parseltongue is not a power.'

'What do you mean?' Asked Harry a bit surprised.

'Parseltongue is inherent to Slytherin's Heritage. It is not just a language, it is the way to bond with snakes. If someone learnt Parseltongue, that wouldn't mean snakes would listen to them. But they do listen to you don't they?'

Harry stood silent as he was momentarily reminded of a peculiar event at a zoo involving his cousin and a boa.

'You're not just a Parselmouth,' continued Tom. 'Slytherin's Heritage flows within you.'

Harry wasn't sure he liked what he was hearing.

'I do not know much about sacrificial magic,' said Tom hesitantly. 'But I know a lot about Horcruxes.' He stared at Harry who avoided his look. 'Living and not-living Horcruxes.'

Harry was frozen. His chest tightened and he thought he was on the verge of having a panic attack. But it made sense. His scar wasn't just a connection. It was the mark of the soul fragment he had received from Voldemort.

'Horcruxes,' recited Tom, 'are dormant parts of someone's soul. But they are nonetheless alive. I guess you have experienced weird mood swings or visions, haven't you?'

'No!' Exclaimed Harry while jumping up. 'You're wrong! I can't be a Horcrux!'

'Why couldn't you?' Asked calmly Tom. 'To create one, you need a powerful vessel and a stolen life. Voldemort stole two that night, so he had plenty. Regarding your power,' he gestured towards the dead Basilisk, 'I don't think it needs further proof.'

Harry's voice froze in his throat, but he wanted to scream. He wanted to protest that he wasn't powerful. That he had always received the right help at the right time. But Tom was right. It all made sense.

'I have to die to defeat him,' whispered the boy defeated.

Suddenly he burst out of laughing and Tom looked at him with consternation. There was no joy in it. It was a savage laugh filled with despair.

'You just found out you had to die, and it makes you laugh?'

'I am sorry,' answered Harry while calming his breath. 'It's just… Ha how dumb have I been!' He giggled a bit more and finally took a deep respiration. 'You see, I am a fifteen-year-old student hunted down by the darkest wizard of all times. I learned that he was practically indestructible because of his Horcruxes and somehow… yes somehow my stupid self thought I could make it out alive. And now, I realise that even if I do everything right and manage to survive, I will have to die anyway!'

Tom stood quiet. Whatever he wanted to say, now wasn't the time. He glanced toward Harry who was now laying his gaze absently on the Chamber.

The boy was innocent and because of him he was cursed with a burden that even he, Tom Riddle, wasn't sure he would have been able to bear.

'This is so unfair…' Whispered Harry. 'This is utterly, completely and inherently unfair.' He spat each word with disgust. 'Is there a way?' He finally asked while turning towards Tom.

'The only way to destroy an Horcrux,' said Tom painfully, 'is to destroy its receptable beyond repair… Or resurrection.' He paused a few seconds. 'And I am afraid that Voldemort will never stop hunting you… Power is a drug. A heavily addicting drug. Once you tasted it there no coming back, as you may know.'

'No, I don't,' replied Harry brutally.

'The possibility to do everything you ever wanted. The end to your limitations… No obstacles, no barrier no… no nothing.' Tom didn't understand how someone could refuse such a delighting prospect. 'Power is freedom.'

'No, it's not,' said Harry firmly. 'Besides if I need freedom, I have my broom. I have never sought power and I don't think I ever will. From what I have gathered on this subject so far, power is trouble. And I've had enough for a lifetime already.'

The boy had a point.

Silence filled the room again and they sat here for a long time. Eventually Harry stood up and left without a word.