July 4, 1941
"Tom, lunch is ready!" Theodora's silvery voice shouted from downstairs.
"I'll be right there!" Tom called, closing the book he was reading. He stood up, taking a look outside at the large backyard with nearly mowed grass. He walked out of his room, jogging down the stairs and into the dining room as Theodora placed two plates down in front of Isidore's grandparents.
"How's your day off been, Tom?" Maven Gaunt asked, and Tom sat in the empty seat next to Theodora where his plate of food waited.
"Great, actually. I went for a run this morning. Thank you for asking, sir," he replied politely. Theodora and her parents smiled to him, beginning to dig in to the lunch she made. Tom bit into the toast, savoring the taste of avocado with lime juice and fried eggs. Theodora was an excellent cook, and always made something delicious no matter which meal they were eating. She had the day off as well, which means they got her cooking for lunch as well.
The doorbell rang, and Theodora scurried our of the room. They heard the door open, followed by a cheerful "Isidore! Happy 4th!"
"Hey, mom, happy 4th to you!" He replied. Soon after, he was in the kitchen to wash his hands as she brought him a plate of food.
"Hey everyone," Isidore announced with a smile as he entered the dining room. He hugged his grandparents, then he and Tom greeted each other with a firm handshake and slap on the back.
"Thanks for lunch, mom," Isidore sang as he sank his teeth into the meal.
"Now, we have something for you two Americans," Isidore's grandmother said, pulling a box up from the seat next to her. She pushed it to Isidore and Theodora, and they opened the lid to find a small cake inside with white frosting and a few blue fireworks across it.
"Thank you!" the two of them exclaimed.
"It's red velvet," Maven announced, and Isidore choked on the water he was swallowing which made everyone laugh.
"You know, I miss America sometimes," Isidore's grandmother said, giving her husband a warm smile. Her the same warm blue eyes her daughter had that matched the kind smile. Maven gave her a shrug with a nod, saying, "but the ministry pulled me back to London."
"It was nice to spend my childhood there," Theodora said with a reminiscent smile, and Isidore went "ditto," with a mouthful of food.
"Well, part of my childhood," Isidore muttered to himself with an indifferent shrug.
"What made you move to the states?" Tom asked, and Lilian Gaunt looked up thoughtfully.
"It was Maven's idea. We were kind of rebellious, as the rest of the Gaunt family had questionable beliefs. I agreed in a heartbeat, and we got to live without the drama of the family for a while," she told Tom. Maven nodded, saying, "It was so difficult to work with that half of the family. They had some very extreme ideas that we didn't want to see come to fruition."
"How did my mother react to her father- or rather, my grandfather?" Tom asked hesitantly. Lilian and Maven exchanged a sad look, and Maven said, "she wasn't happy. I don't even think she had a voice for herself. However, I don't believe she agreed with them at all."
Tom gave him a curious look, and asked, "what were the Gaunt's ideals?"
Maven gave an uncomfortable sigh, saying, "Marvolo and I did not agree on this, by any means-"
Maven lowered his voice, saying, "he was very prejudiced against those who weren't pureblood. He was a firm believer that only purebloods has the right to carry power, but was terribly wrong. We fought to no end about it."
"Is that why he hid her from you?" Tom asked, and Maven nodded.
"That was largely it. For the longest time, she was thought to have no magical ability. But she did, and she passed it on to you."
"Is my father a pureblood then?"
Maven shook his head with a shrug, saying, "I did some research, and I believe your father is a muggle businessman in London. I saw something about his company in the paper, and the man in the picture was a spitting image of you. His name is Tom Riddle, and Theodora recognized him from the picture Merope had showed her back when she was in Hogwarts. I mean, if it's not him, I don't know who is."
"What?" Tom breathed, and Maven said, "I wasn't trying to keep anything from you- it's just that I found out within the week. You were at work, and I didn't know when the right time was to tell you. And, apparently he's in America for business through September, when you'll be back at school. I promise I was going to tell you soon, but I wanted to find a good time."
"Oh, it's alright- I'm just a little surprised there's actually something to go off of now," Tom stuttered, clearly stunned by Maven's words.
"This is great news, Tom," Theodora said, giving him a hopeful smile. He nodded slowly, and Isidore said, "I know how it feels to suddenly learn someone's your father. But you still have to find out who he is."
"And if he is your father, that tells us that Merope didn't believe in the prejudice against muggles. She really seemed to be in love with him, Tom," Theodora told him, giving Tom's arm a warm squeeze. She couldn't tell what he was thinking, and each of the people around him shared the same worry. He already felt abandoned as an orphan, despite the welcoming environment he now had, and would certainly feel worse as a half-blood in a prejudice pureblood family.
"Listen, Tom. We don't know who your father is for sure, but we have time to figure that out. And now, you're with family that loves you, and we want you to feel safe here. You can use magic around us. Here, you're home. I know it's hard not to get hung up on what could've been if this man is your father, but you've got us now. When you're ready to look for him, we'll be there to help," she told him with a soft tone. His blue eyes met hers, catching her by surprise. He usually had a sharp and slightly hardened look in them, indicative of his maturity. However, in this moment, his eyes looked lost. They reminded her of a child's innocent look, when they are lost or clinging to their mother's hand to feel safe.
He nodded slowly, saying, "you're right. Thank you."
"Finding out who you are is difficult, but we all experience it as some point. It's a part of life," Maven said, his gray eyes wise as the few wrinkles around them crinkled with a smile. Tom looked at the older couple sitting across from him, seeing their own painful experiences etched into their kind smiles.
Maven Gaunt married a half-blooded woman he loved, which already defied the family's ideals. He then went on to make his own life, and did splendidly. He found a job that allowed his family to be well-off, and raised his children as good people. He and his wife suffered greatly at Cornelius's expense, unable to see their grandchildren while their daughter was wrongfully locked in prison. But they never lost faith, and in the end, were happy once again. Maven especially had done a lot of self-reflection and learned who he was once he defied the Gaunts, and never regretted what he had done. Evander had just as many hardships, yet got what he wanted in the end.
But not everyone gets a happy ending, Tom thought to himself.
Tom found himself thinking about how Eleonora would be trying to tell him to have faith, then he realized she was the epitome of Maven's advice. She was viewed as a monster, and a freak who grew to detest her powers because of how inhuman they made her feel. Her life consists of her letting go of her past, and finding out who she is as she learns to love herself. He's seen her struggle over the years, coming to terms with her power when all she wanted was to be normal.
Then she found Tom. The two of them felt true empathy about the same thing for the first time.
She must've been lonely, Tom thought as he remembered the taunting of the Wool's children that turned into fear. For the first time this summer, he wasn't sitting in the dimly lit dorm room, with a dingy bed frame and hard mattress. The window he had offered little light to the room, where he'd lose track of time sitting in it alone as he and the children avoided each other. Hogwarts felt so open and welcoming compared to the cramped orphanage, and he couldn't even use magic. It was the first thing he felt passion for, and it was always taken from him each summer. People would come and go, but magic was a constant in his life.
He looked back over the table, realizing these relationships were most likely not transient. He wanted them to last, but couldn't trust it from his past experience.
"Hey, Tom," he heard Theodora's sweet voice say as he felt a gentle shake. He looked over at her, and she said, "you spaced out a bit. Let's stop talking about all this. It's a lot right now. We have a cake to eat!"
He nodded, and she stood up, bringing the cake with her into the kitchen to slice it. As soon as she was gone, there was a loud slam against the window, startling everyone in the dining room.
A blur of an owl flew back and plunged to the ground outside, and Isidore muttered, "Leviathan!"
He opened the window, beckoning the confused owl inside as it shook its head to catch its balance. It twitched, then took off and crashed into Isidore's arms.
"He brought mail," Isidore announced, pulling a letter out of the little backpack Theodora sewed for him to wear on his back. Isidore flipped through the envelopes, then handed one to Tom.
"It's form Eleonora," he announced, then handed his grandfather one saying, "your bank statement," and walked away to hand Theodora her letter from Evander. Tom opened his letter, unfolding the paper with Eleonora's large but neat print adorning the paper.
Tom,
Remember how I said that nothing exciting happens at a primary care doctor's office? Well, I wish I had never said that. You were right, I jinxed myself. Yesterday alone, a pregnant patient came in a week before her due date for a check-up, then her water broke all over my shoes as I took her to a room. She and her baby were taken to the hospital safely, so that's good. Then after she left, someone else came in with her son, who was so hyper that we chased him around the entire office. He jumped on counters, pulled supplies out of cabinets, threw his shirt at me. It was a nightmare.
You can say, "I told you so." Laugh it up; you earned it.
Anyway, other than that, my life's been relatively normal. I usually work from 8:00-4:00, three days a week since my dad said I should enjoy my summer by not spending it all at his office. I've gotten to catch up with my cousins, and usually go somewhere with them once a week. We like heading to the museums out here. You'd like them too. Come visit, and we'll go!
I'm so glad to hear you've been getting along with Isidore's grandparents. They sound like really nice people. Have you been able to learn anything more about your mother? And speaking of mothers, Isidore's sounds like she is the perfect for you to be around. I'd love to try her cooking someday. You and my mom attest to her meals being exquisite.
Also, what's it like living with Leviathan? I'm sure he delivered this letter from the ministry's post office. Did he slam into you again? Tell the poor thing I said hello.
I'm finding myself nodding off as I'm writing this, so I'll head to bed. I've had a long day, and have work tomorrow bright and early.
All the best,
Eleonora
Just as Tom finished reading the letter, he heard the clatter of a plate being placed in front of him. He looked up, seeing Theodora placing a fork next to it, saying, "thank you very much."
"Eat up," she replied, then tugged Isidore's ear as she comically snarled, "you, slow down!"
"Ow!" he yelped through the cake he had packed in, sitting back to rub his ear. Tom neatly sliced into the cake, beginning to think of his reply to Eleonora's letter. He had found out some news about his parents, but still wasn't sure whether it was good or bad.
But other than that, things aren't so bad- he thought, hearing laughter around the room from the joke Isidore just cracked. His grandparents were good people, and provided him with a beautiful home. His room was twice the size of the dorm at Wool's, with sky blue walls and crown molding across its tall ceilings. His window was large, giving him a view of greenery unlike the concrete wall view at Wool's. The bed was comfortable, and he had blankets that actually kept him warm with expensive sheets, unlike the old and dingy ones from the orphanage. But best of all, the home felt happy. Theodora was always in a pleasant mood, with her sonorous soprano voice echoing through the house when she cooked or cleaned. And for the first time, Tom felt like he had a family.
The day the school year ended, Tom saw Theodora waiting for him and her children at King's Cross, and welcomed him with a warm hug. She always asked about his day when he came home from work, always sounding excited despite the fact that he worked at a grocery store nearby. If he replaced produce, she'd ask all about how they inspect it, and how they arrange it despite the topic being boring. If he bagged, she'd ask about the customers he spoke to. She told him she worried about him when he was off at work because London could be made a bombing target again with the war, always asking for him to hurry home as soon as work was over.
Tom had come down with a cold in June, and she insisted caring for him day and night. It was a simple cold other than the fever he had, and he reminded her time and time again. Yet she would lay cool compresses to his forehead every hour on the hour for him until bed, make him special teas and remedies for the cough and sore throat he had, and he caught her poking in his room in the middle of the night to feel his forehead for a fever. She was the doting mother he never had. And she seemed too good to be true.
He also got used to Evander and Isidore's visits. Evander worked with the London ministry during the summer months, and would visit often or take Theodora out for the evening. He enjoyed Tom's company, which was mutual. Evander was someone Tom found easy to get along with, between his intelligence and charm that was so similar to Tom's. Evander always had something to teach Tom, and saw himself in Tom with his eagerness to learn. He really was a young version of Evander, and they respected each other.
He looked to her, hearing her saying, "exactly, mom. I never know who to cheer for in Quidditch. I'm a Hufflepuff, my daughters are Ravenclaw, and my son is Slytherin's seeker! At least with Ilvermorny, I know I can side with Thunderbird and won't feel bad about it!"
She laughed, her smile beautiful and radiant, as if Azkaban had never happened. From what she had just said, Tom was reminded of the next school year.
Huh? he thought, feeling a sad twinge in his chest as he looked at her. He still looked forward to the school year, but felt a foreign sense of hesitation.
It was followed by a thought he never expected to have:
I wish summer break was a bit longer.
A/N: Yep, another update came pretty fast. I had a big chunk of this written already, so here you go. Next we'll be starting the fifth year!
Thanks for reading, any feedback is much appreciated. :)
