...

"What do you plan to do with Harry Potter?"

Respira was ready. The thought, for a moment, caused his expression to break the slightest. The Dark Lord before him noticing, if the red glint in his eye was anything to go by. He himself held in the urge to smile, his fingers itching to move as he took in another calm breath. His routine barely disrupted.

Respira was ready.

One of the final spells his grandfather had passed onto him. His gift for deciding to pick up the art of Ancient Runes.

At it's most basic level, it had been a rather easy spell to figure out. The hard part came in actually using the spell effectively. Rodrick idly gazed at the, invisible to the rest of the room, glowing runic letters absently floating around.

At it's most basic level, Respira was a spell used to conjure a foundation for runic scripture. A template so to speak. One that encompassed whatever the runes light shined on. And until recently, he neither had the stamina nor the full knowledge on what each letter represented to safely use it.

Look at him been careful! Everyone would be so proud! Or relieved.

He wasn't sure what that said about him.

Still, what he'd learnt in his lessons, unfortunately didn't cover the ancient alphabet his grandfather had so delightfully decided to put him through. At the same time refusing to elaborate on what he'd known of them himself. Though at the very least, the Hogwarts library provided him with what he'd needed. His endless supply of free passes giving him all the freedom he'd needed. At least until Dumbledore found out anyway.

Stilling his focus, Rodrick ordered the letters around him into a sequence, his wand for a moment shining. The spell he intended to have enhanced on the tip of his tongue, before Voldemort promptly and effortlessly froze him with but a few words.

"I've yet to meet the boy, whether he's willing to set aside our differences is entirely on him,"

Rodrick blinked, his wand arm dropping the slightest as he stared at the utterly geniune expression on Tom Riddle's smiling smug face.

It oddly reminded him of what he saw in the mirror every now and then, though he perished the thought. His eyes glinted as the invisible runes changed formation and lettering. An idle thought fixing itself into his memory, his apology to Malfoy prepared. A far more destructive spell in mind. A second, smaller, set of letters powering his strongest non-verbal lie detector. Admittedly a hopeful thought expecting it to have any effect on the person before him, but every, no matter how little, advantage helped.

"I am sorry," He deadpanned, sarcasm dripping with every syllable. "But that sounds like-"

And for the third time in the past hour, Rodrick found himself speechless, his runes displacing once again as his focus slipped.

"I am not interested in another war." Tom Riddle shrugged. "I am quite happy to take over this country through more legal means-"

"I've taken out two of your Horcruxes-" Rodrick remarked thinly, a smile tugging at his lips as he fastened his hold over the wand.

"And I killed your parents, I'd say that makes us even." Tom Riddle continued without missing a beat, his own focus strengthened as he covered himself in every non-verbal protective enchantment he could think of. Expecting a violent eruption from the child before him.

Rodrick's sight had, for a moment, tinted in red before to the surprise of near everyone in the room, his calm facade broke entirely. A low chuckle coming out as he relaxed his hold. The invisibility charm covering his runes disappearing entirely, each and every rune showcasing itself for all to see.

...

Tom Riddle's eyes sparkled at the sight of the runes, the urge to studying them almost overtaking him as he realised each letter seemed to reek of something vile. The urge to run warring with the urge to watch it play through. To find out it's secrets. His curiosity, in the end, winning. And as he waited, with bated breath, waited for the moment the spell showed off it's true colours, the boy proceeded to stump him as instead of releasing off whatever he'd been concealing under invisibility. His disturbing cackle died off, a more reserved look taking over.

"Legal means huh?" Rodrick questioned, not looking the other in the eye. his peripheral showing empty seats. The Death Eaters having decided to take the initiative and precaution in moving as far as they were formally allowed to. Which given Tom's irritated expression on having noticed, was one that paid off. "Alright then, while I am sure the ministry is smart enough to put two and two together..."

Tom suppressed the sigh, his curiosity at the spell's intricacies dampening.

"Just to be certain, why don't you just admit to your,-" Tom barely held in the twitch at the sight of two quotation marks hovering just above the boy's head. "-secret identity. Then we can talk about-" And Rodrick would be a liar if he said he didn't like the sheer irritation currently gracing Tom Riddle's face, his impatience clear for all to see-

"That's rich, coming from a Grindelwald,"

...

And with that, Rodrick froze, his shocked expression breaking the calm facade as he turned a glare towards Barty Crouch Jr. The man's indifferent gaze staring right back at him, unflinching.

"Grindelwald..." Tom Riddle's earlier visage disappeared entirely, his voice barely above a whisper, replaced by what Rodrick could only describe as sheer utter joy. His own teeth grinding as he watched each and every rune shrink down in size, encompassing him and the wizard before him. The Death Eaters barring Barty ignored as a few latched on to his temporary defence professor. The others, on having noticed the atmosphere promptly decided enough was enough and disappeared. Albiet Malfoy looked somewhat worried about his home. The crack of apparition coming for all of them. All but one.

The Dark Lord's eyes locked onto his own and for the first time that day changed. The earlier worry, despite the situation, having disappeared, replaced with a red glint that petrified him. Even now, with all but Barty having left his side, even as he watched every rune encompass him, he wasn't the slightest bit worried. Wasn't the slightest bit panicked even!

"These runes prevent both of us from leaving, I hope you realise that... I am however certainly impressed you learned how to apparate, and so young." Tom Riddle drawled, his chin on top of a hand as he locked gazes with the other.
The words, to his surprise, did nothing in return. If anything the boy's face turned even more passive. An almost dull expression filling in.

He looked like someone had just told him the stupidest idea in the world.

Tom was, in truth, curious as to what the boy in fact intended to do, trapping the both of them as he did. His mind warring with itself to react as opposed to waiting to see. To see if the boy could surprise him again, to see what a Grindelwald could accomplish... To see whether the purity of ones blood did, in the end, truly matter.

The moment he started gleefully, and somewhat derangedly given the lack of context, chuckling, Rodrick promptly waved his wand and set off the enhanced Fiendfyre, his own body automatically disappearing in a burst of fire as the Dark Lord's eyes rapidly widened at the sight.

...

In regards to the recent reviews regarding the grammar and punctuation, I will, given the time, start combing through the story fixing it where I can!

Otherwise as always hope you enjoyed! Don't forget feedback!