A/N: I hate that it takes me so long to update, but I can't help it right now. Thank you guys for all the favorites!.

Harry remained functional for most of the night, coming up with a plan with Snape to meet with the Dark Lord. The Potions Master insisted this was a bad idea until the girl's stubbornness wore him down. However, the moment Severus left, she collapsed.

Everything was too much, the knowledge that she would soon be dead, the nausea that came with drinking too much vodka.

Hugging her knees, Harriet cried until her eyes swelled so much that she was no longer able to see a foot in front of her. Crying brought no relief, however. As her sobs gradually subsided, the girl got a cold sense of emptiness, of being alone.

There were more pressing matters to be resolved than her suffering, steps Harry needed to take before going to Voldemort to deceive him. A shiver of discomfort shook Potter's body at the thought.

She had yet to gather the rebellion leaders and talk about what she was about to do, but for one night, the girl chose to be selfish over practical. She decided to focus on the things she wanted to know.

She couldn't stop thinking about Regulus' betrayal, and she also would definitely need the help of the boys trapped in the locket if she was to have a chance of succeeding.


Tom wasn't there when Potter entered the locket, and the setting also didn't match the urban district where she always found them. There was only Regulus, flipping through a book whose cover the girl recognized as part of the collection that Dumbledore had taken from the Restricted Section of Hogwarts and hidden in his own office.

Harry immediately identified the location as a graveyard. The low grass was immaculate, and the marble statues adorning tombs and mausoleums followed her steps with judgmental glances. ''Alphard Black'' was the name that read on the grave to which Regulus kept company. He was seated on the ground with a posture as rigid and perfect as that of the monuments.

The instant his cold eyes lifted to the girl, she felt her throat tighten. She was still angry, and the surprise on his face hinted at how stupid Harriet was for getting back there so quickly.

''Harry''. Regulus mumbled with some reverence, getting up from the ground.

"You said you were sorry. I want answers." She replied, impassive. But as soon as the demanding words left her mouth, the girl felt ridiculous. He could laugh at her petulance or lie blatantly again. And that's what Harriet believed he would do until Regulus proved otherwise.

'' Okay ''. The boy said, closing the book to join her.

It was still hard to face him and know that she had trusted him enough to share her deepest secrets, things that neither Ron nor Hermione knew. Before she ended up attacking him again, Harriet cleared her throat and put her hands in her pockets. "Where's Riddle?".

There was a pause before Regulus replied. " Not here. "

Potter's eyes narrowed. "I meant it when I said I'd destroy the locket if you tried to drain me again."

"I'm not lying to you. I don't always know where Tom is. He made a mistake, creating the first Horcruxes. This place has some rules but not many."

Harry knew that the soul was a taboo subject in the magical world. There weren't many studies about it, especially in dividing it.

Taking this into account made it reasonable to believe in Regulus. Voldemort was the only Wizard who had managed to make more than one Horcrux known to history, and he hadn't gone around writing articles on the topic.

Black took her silence as a sign to keep talking. " Horcruxes shouldn't have a conscience, but he made a mistake, so the locket became like a small dimension. We still need to feed on the energy of someone else to interact with the outside world, but we continue to exist here ''.

"And why this place?".

Regulus offered her a small smile. "Ironically, the dimension inside the object is a replica of the place where the Horcrux was made, at least the parts Tom saw of that place. My knowledge of the neighborhood expanded what you're seeing when my counterpart put me here, but we've stuck since 79.".

"Stuck with Riddle in a ghost town for nineteen years. I feel morally obligated not to hold a grudge. I think that's punishment enough."

Regulus arched an eyebrow. ''He's not what you think''.

" Sure. " Harriet answered with sarcasm, accompanying him.

She knew that Regulus was not innocent, but she also couldn't see him in the same genocidal light as Voldemort. Harry felt that existed some truths in the lies he had told her. "How did you end up here? Stuck with him of your own free will?".

"I'll tell you, but you'll have to decide on your own how much to believe me."

Potter nodded, following him into a luxurious bakery. Linen tablecloths in the same dark lavender color covered all the tables, a chandelier made of thousands of crystals dangled by the ceiling, and an array of art-like sweets in the window.

The establishment was empty when they entered, with Regulus pulling out the chair for her to sit. Potter frowned questioningly, and the boy curled the corner of his mouth in a half-smile. "I'm sorry, old habits die hard. I didn't lie when I said my mother was passionate about the excellence of our education."

Harriet fell silent in understanding and allowed him to follow that code of etiquette, even though she doubted Walburga Black would approve of courtesies to a filthy half-blood.

The table filled itself magically with tea and delicacies as soon as the two took their seats.

"Sirius was always the favorite son, no matter what he did. I was never more than the spare , a precautionary measure to ensure that our line remained with the family leadership. Through their indifference, I forced myself to excel in everything. In my behavior, in my grades, in my manners. But no matter how hard I tried, my parents didn't care ''.

Regulus paused there, bringing the cup of tea to his lips. His posture at the table was perfect, as were each of his elegant movements. Self-conscious, Harriet straightened in her chair and sipped her own mug, which had no flavor, probably because those were Regulus' memories of the place.

"When I was twelve, the Dark Lord came to our house during school break and talked to my parents. Everything changed from there. He said I was special. He said he had a plan for me, for my future.". The boy smiled bitterly. His eyes, usually cold, filled with an abrasive heat.

Once again, Harry found herself not wanting to believe him, even though she was the one who had insisted on hearing that story. However, the girl knew how manipulative Tom Riddle was as a teenager. She couldn't even imagine the power of charisma an adult Voldemort would have over a chil dlike Regulus, a second son ignored by his parents.

"For the first time in my life, I was the pride of The Noble and Most Ancient House of Black . Voldemort taught me personally. He was patient with me and listened to what I had to say."

"And you listened to what he had to say about the Mudbloods and Blood Traitors."

Regulus grimaced. "I never had any contact with Muggle-borns before Hogwarts, and the ones I met there scoffed at our traditions. I now know that much of this is to blame for the pure-blood approach, but I didn't have that same reasoning at age twelve or sixteen".

Harriet nodded, folding both arms across the table to lean toward him, mesmerized by the delicate way his lips moved as he spoke.

"The Dark Lord began to change as the years went by. The continuous mutilation of his soul probably destabilized him, or maybe it was the Gaunt madness setting in. He became crazier every day, and it started to disturb me. The movement became more about torture and persecution than politics. A few months before I got the mark, I told my parents that maybe I didn't want to be a death eater anymore. Walburga slapped me in response, and then I realized I never really had a choice."

"I shouldn't have punched you. I'm sorry." Harriet stammered suddenly, feeling a wave of embarrassment.

The grim expression on his face got lit up by amusement and something else, something softer. " I forgive you. "

Harry almost allowed herself to get lost once more in the illusion of the boy that wouldn't hurt a fly, just because of the way his smile soothed his features.

"How did you find out what the locket was?". Potter questioned, to distract herself.

"The Dark Lord asked for Kreacher, but that part you already know. I studied the locket's magic but didn't find out what it was until I had a conversation with Professor Slughorn. By then, Tom had drained me enough to start manifesting. ".

"And convince you to commit murder, divide your soul."

"It's not what it seems. I'm not a victim. I knew what I was doing when I killed Orion."

"He made you kill your father?". Even knowing what Riddle was capable of, Harry felt shocked.

"I needed very little encouragement. My father was as much a victim of Walburga as Sirius and I, but I was eighteen, and they were selling me to a mad man. I was angry, and afraid."

"And Riddle was the only one offering you a way out."

"Yes, but you don't have to pity me. We're in the same boat here. What life is there for us without him? I'm a second child. Nothing I did was ever enough for my family. And you're just a piece in Dumbledore's game against another Dark Lord. You won't survive this war without my help, without his help. Your friends will grieve, but they'll get on with their lives."

Harriet went quiet. He was right.

She wouldn't survive, but not for the reasons he thought she wouldn't. Regulus didn't know about her status as a Horcrux. Harry kept the conversation she had with Snape locked away in her mind in a place where no one but her could access it.

"They might name a child after you, but so what? You'll be dead at eighteen, just like me."

His words were hard and true. Harriet was still that same little girl crying in the cupboard under the stairs, shunned and despised, treated by the Dursleys like old furniture they couldn't get rid of because it was a family heirloom. She didn't belong anywhere. She would never belong.

" It doesn't matter. " Potter reacted defiantly. " He's Voldemort."

" I'm not. " Riddle replied, entering the bakery to join them. "Voldemort was a mistake, a failure in my plans, I admit that. But I won't make the same errors."

"You call genocide a mistake? That's rich."

"Don't be naive, Harry. I know you hate me as much as you hate Voldemort, but none of us could have done much without the support of more than half of the Wizarding Community. I understand it's easier to hate the man than the people behind the idea, but don't act like a hypocrite. You're a smart girl ''.

"Smart enough not to believe you." She snapped back. Regulus looked like he'd like to be somewhere else. He had very little patience for their constant bickering.

Tom put his chin on his fist. "I could have killed you, but here we are."

"You are waiting for the right moment."

"He's not. We could both be out of the locket by now, but he doesn't want to kill you, and neither do I." Regulus' casual way of saying that left her speechless and a little confused, hesitant.

" What? Why? ".

"You're powerful, you learn fast, and you know how to adapt. I won't kill you if it's not absolutely necessary, and besides, I know something you don't." Riddle delivered the last part in an almost childlike hum. The predatory smile on his mouth should have scared her, but instead, she felt drawn to that game.

But before she could question him, the man turned to Regulus, a darkly hungry expression on his face. "It's her. Isn't it? I didn't recognize it at first, but now I can clearly see it's her."

Regulus nodded, looking somber and relinquished. Harriet grimaced. " What do you mean? ".

"It's not time for you to know yet, but let's just say that Grindelwald isn't the only one with a tendency to have prophetic visions."

"Forget it. I don't want to know. I've had enough of prophecies. If I don't hear this one, maybe it'll save me the headache."

Riddle chuckled. "Oh, my love. You have no idea...".

Regulus cast a disapproving look at Tom before turning his attention to Harriet. "Is there anything else you want to know?"

Harry took a moment to think, looking through the shop's windowpane and jumping in her chair when she remembered something. That was where Tom had killed Hepzibah Smith. ''This is the place! You killed that woman here, the old woman you seduced to get the locket and the cup''.

Indignation washed over Riddle's face. ''I didn't seduce anyone, least of all Hepzibah Smith''.

''You slept with that old hag? ''. Now it was Regulus who looked horrified.

'' Yes! He even bought her flowers. He constantly went to her house for tea."

''Flowers and tea are your evidence of seduction, my love? Your life must be really depressing''.

''Shut up, you just don't want to admit that you slept with her because of those trinkets''.

''Merlin, she was so old... ''. Regulus muttered, thoughtful.

''I already told you I had nothing to do with her! ''.


Silence is a heavy presence inside the tent. Harry focuses on the rhythm of her breathing, the way her lungs fill with air each time she exhales. There's a comfortable humming in her chest where the locket touches, though the relaxed mood the last time she'd spoken to them has faded.

Ron's fingers are steady as they slide over the girl's hair, interweaving the strands into a simple tight braid.

It had been their ritual since Harry's first Quidditch match at Hogwarts. Potter didn't know what to do with her hair, but Ron, who had been helping his mother take care of Ginny since she was a baby, offered to help. That was her lucky hairstyle. They would need all the luck they could get.

Convincing the camp leaders was a lot easier than Harry imagined. It occurred to her that they just hadn't suggested what the girl was proposing themselves out of shame. No one wanted to be the one to sell a girl barely eighteen to a Dark Lord. Kingsley was the only one to oppose it, arguing against Harriet's plan until the last moment, but when the girl brought up the status of the war, there were no more counterarguments on his part. Their side was losing. Any bargain she made with Voldemort would be beneficial.

Exchanging notes with Voldemort proved more complicated. The rebels captured a Death Eater to send the message through, receiving a response and dozens of threats three days later.

"Don't look at me like that." Potter says, setting her jaw. As distracted as she is, she still can see Ron's conflicting emotions and tense face creasing in the mirror's reflection a few feet away.

Weasley drops his arms to his sides. To say he disapproves of the plan is generosity. " Like what? ".

"Like I'm a cheap whore."

There was a pause of silence. Hermione's grip spasmed against the book she was reading in the corner of the tent.

"I wouldn't say that the peace you think you'll get is cheap, but if the shoes fit."

"Ron!" Granger exclaims, approaching them.

The boy rolls his eyes and throws his arms up in surrender. "Fine, I'm sorry. But I still think this is stupidity, suicide."

"He won't kill me."

"How can you be so sure? The bloke is batshit crazy."

"I know, but he's superstitious too. He'll see our negotiation as a means of circumventing the prophecy."

Ron's face turned sad. "Harry, please don't do this."

" I have to. ''

"No, you don't! It's not fair for you to make a deal with the monster that orphaned you. I don't care what the Order thinks. You don't have to sell yourself to him for our sake. I'd rather fight. I'd rather die than allow him to get his claws into you."

And I'd rather have his claws on me than see one of you hurt . Harry thinks but doesn't say.

" Do you trust me? ".

''I haven't done anything but trust you since we were eleven years old''.

'' Good. We'll get through this, as we always get through everything''.

Harry wraps her hands in Ron's. Hermione has already joined them a second later.

Granger has always been their stronghold, but with the things she witnesses as a mediwitch and Draco's name on the Order's spy list, she's getting worn out. ''We are in this together''. She speaks, sounding more like the girl Harriet knew as a child.


Emmeline Vance is the only other person trying to dissuade Harry from the plan. The woman corners her minutes before they leave for the meeting point Voldemort has chosen.

" Are you sure about that? ". Emmeline inquiries as she catches her alone. Harry pauses for a moment to stare at her. Her time in the locket with Regulus altered her perspective on many things, many people.

Vance volunteered for the advance guard. She fought in the first and second wizarding wars. Harry never heard her complain or hesitate. She is strong and capable, one of the best soldiers the Rebellion has.

Emmeline knows the price of war, yet she is asking if Harry is sure.

" What else can I do? ".

"Harriet." Emmeline says and puts a hand on her shoulder. "If someone got into your head the idea of asking him for a truce, forget it. It's you who's going to have to deal with him. It's not me. It's not Kingsley. It's not Moody. It's you ." There are purple crescent moons just below her eyes. The woman looks tired.

" I want to do that. " Potter says, and it sounds almost convincing. "If this war continues, there will be no one left to fight it, and if we lose... It's more than our side is at stake."

They were the only barrier between Voldemort and thousands of innocent Muggles.

Emmeline swept her face with her eyes as if looking for something. "I'll be honest with you. I don't want to do this. I saw Regulus get seduced by The Dark Lord's promises and lies, and I swore myself that I would never allow that to happen again."

"I won't fall for his lies, just as Regulus didn't."

Vence stared at her, completely speechless.

"He betrayed you-know-who. That's why they killed him. He wanted to defect. I discovered this when I was fumbling through his things."

Emmeline's expression breaks into a flurry of different emotions, her blue eyes filling with tears as she hugs Harriet in an impulsive gesture. "Thank you, thank you for this."

The locket is hot against Harriet's skin, she can feel Regulus, and when she opens her mouth, it's his words that come out. "He would like you to know he wasn't a coward, that he learned his lesson in the end."


She thought Voldemort would choose a much less mundane place for their meeting (she refused to call it a date). But he surprised her in that regard, for the coffee shop was nothing but ordinary.

There was no staff inside the establishment when Harriet entered, taking one step at a time, just a few Death Eater standing close to the walls, like living statues ready to pounce at the slightest sign. Harry could see their eyes under their masks, following her every move.

The man waiting for her was even more surprising. She expected Voldemort, with that monstrous serpentine face and bloodshot eyes. The man sitting so casually with a familiar arrogant posture couldn't have been further from it.

He looked like Tom in a way that made her anxious and uncomfortable and made her realize that she had already begun to separate them as different people inside her head.

The man waiting for her had dark hair, the same painfully attractive face, the same mannerisms. If it weren't for the tiny age lines around his mouth and eyes, Harry would have thought it was Tom there, the boy she'd been with just a few hours before.

" Harry Potter. " He saluted, his orbs roaming every inch of her figure with a greedy look that made her feel naked. She didn't like the way her name sounded in his voice.

Maybe she had made an impulsive decision, but it was too late to go back.

She remembered what Regulus had said as they talked about this meeting. He likes insolence but not too much, just enough to amuse him. And whatever happens, don't show that you're afraid. It will irritate him.

Harriet had looked at Tom with an annoyed expression. "Really? Couldn't you be less complicated?"

He kept his expression undisturbed. "People have been scared of me since I learned how to walk. It got boring a long time ago."

" This is me. " Harry finally responds, walking over to the table as if she's heading to her own execution.

She'd been meticulous about how she looked and what message it would pass. Her face was clean, Ron had braided her hair back, and she was wearing one of Regulus's button-down shirts, which she had snagged from Grimmauld place a while ago.

She wasn't good at occlumency, but she was using the technique Snape had taught her, keeping only the parts he absolutely couldn't know; the Horcruxes, her true intentions.

"You look surprised, Harry."

''Not at all. I've always known your taste for masks''. Potter replied defiantly.

Voldemort smiled. His smile was not at all like Tom's. The perfection of that stolen face couldn't hide the monstrosity behind the gesture. When Tom smiled, it was mischievously, with superior intelligence, as if he were sharing a secret with her, Regulus or both. When Voldemort smiled, it was just an empty motion, something unattractive.

''And you don't like masks? The girl who lived. What a big weight for a little girl''.

''I could never be a little girl, thanks to you''.

''We're not here to talk about the past, Harry. You requested this meeting, now speak ''.

''I want a truce''.

''You want a truce? ''. Voldemort looks incredulous.

''You've always...you've always given me the option to join you''.

The man remains in disbelief. ''You must be very desperate''.

''I am, and I'm not ashamed to admit it. I have a responsibility to the people who chose to follow me''.

''Very idealistic. I must assume that you are desperate and that this has nothing to do with Dolohov's capture?. Be honest with me, Harry. I don't like liars. What did he tell you? ''.

Harriet knew it was impossible to lie to him. Voldemort would always be three steps ahead of her, the girl's only advantage being her ability to hide certain information from him.

''He told me about Grindelwald's prophecy''. Potter says, voice trembling. She needs to look vulnerable, desperate, and exploitable.

'' And you came after me for this? A prophecy you heard from a Death Eater ''.

''You killed my parents under the same circumstances''.

"Touché. Not my best moment, I have to admit."

Harry suppresses the urge to cringe. She is without the locket, without the familiar warmness of their presence. Potter feels terrible. Rare were the occasions where she didn't have the locket around her throat and one of the boys whispering in her ears in these last few months.

Voldemort stares at her for a long moment before speaking again. ''Are you ready to go? ''.

'' Now? I have things I need to settle with my people ''.

He raised his eyebrow the same way Tom did when she annoyed him. Harry wanted to claw Voldemort's skin off. That face wasn't his to wear. '' You came all the way here to ask me for a truce, and you still haven't sorted it out? ''.

''To be honest, I was expecting you to kill me the moment I walked through the door''.

''No, you weren't. You are planning something, but I will allow it. When you realize you cannot win, you will be grateful for my mercy. You have one month, my death eaters will not harm your people, I will even let those who want to leave the country to do so, but you will join me''.

He wants them to go away, Harry thinks. He wants me to have no support. He knows I won't run away.

Harry remembers what Ron said.

Peace doesn't come cheap.

Her eyes meet Voldemort's for a second, and the girl feels him inside her head, reviving the same conversation she had with her best friend. ''Tell your friend that you're too young for me, but in a few decades... Well, we'll see ''.

He assessed her for another second, inspecting her figure. '' I also don't like virgins ''.

Harriet refused to be embarrassed. Her lack of love life was his fault, after all. ''I will keep that in mind and dedicate myself to a life of celibacy''.

"You have a month, Harry. Don't make me come after you."

'' If I deceive you, you will turn everyone I love into potion ingredients, I know''.


''You have his attention, my congratulations''. Tom speaks after he and Regulus have examined her memories of the encounter in a pensieve.

They are in the apartment Black got from his parents upon graduating.

The apartment is the most pretentious place Harriet has ever seen, with rooms carved from alabaster and warm pale beige decor that screams money and good taste. The fireplace warms the right side of the girl's body, sitting on a divan-style sofa with the softest upholstery she's ever felt.

The boys share a twin piece of furniture in front of her, Riddle has one of his arms around Regulus' shoulders, and the boy has his hand on his thigh. Harry began to suspect that there was something more between the two of them, from the looks they exchanged and the touches.

This possibility would better explain Riddle giving her a mini aneurysm for punching Regulus in the face.

Either way, Potter decided their relationship was none of her business. Same-sex couples were frowned upon in both the wizarding and muggle worlds. But as long as they didn't team up to try to kill her again, she didn't care.

Not that she thought they really tried. It took Ginny very little time to start being possessed by Riddle, and even though Harriet wanted to believe she was tougher than an eleven-year-old girl, that wasn't true. She had no mental defense. Her only talent was hiding information inside her own head. Between Regulus and Tom, they would have already killed her if they actually wanted to.

''I have time, a month to find the other Horcruxes and get rid of him. If you do your part and help me''.

''Ravenclaw's diadem is in the room of requirement, at Hogwarts. I'll tell you how to find it, and you can ask one of your cronies to bring it here. Also, now you have the sword, you can get rid of two Horcruxes at once ''. Tom smirked at her.

He had seen Gryffindor's sword accidentally through her eyes earlier, and he wasn't happy about it.

Harry swallows hard. She keeps telling herself that she can't destroy the locket until she knows everything they know, but that's a lie.

Even with their conspiracy, she doesn't want to get rid of them, and that's a hard truth to accept. She feels comfortable in their presence. Tom knows that too.

'' Stop antagonizing her. Voldemort didn't ask for a guarantee from you, Harry. Or he's too arrogant, or he's planning something. We better focus on this now ''. Regulus says, sliding a hand across his hair.

'' I know, and I doubt that the diadem is his last Horcrux ''.

Riddle smiles. ''One thing at a time, my love. A lot happens in a month''.