"I'm not at liberty to speak of the curse of the Crabbe family, which you know all too well," Harry said for the umpteenth time and a vein was starting to pulse on Mr. Greenwich's forehead.
"You almost lost your life to this curse, but you don't seem to care if they use it on someone else!"
"Using the curse had been my own choice. I won't hold them responsible for my own actions," the youngster stated with a blank expression and the man before him couldn't get more annoyed. The vein was getting clearer with every pulse. "I will tell you that the Crabbe family was against the use of the curse, so..." He left the interpretation open and the head of the Aurors quickly penned that down himself. The feather behind him was recording everything as was spoken.
"Then we don't have anything more to discuss," Greenwich blew him off. "I would never tolerate this from one of my Aurors." The man gave him a distasteful look before standing up and Harry's eyes narrowed at him.
"Good thing I'm not one of them."
"Yes, good thing," Mr. Greenwich smiled coldly and walked over to the door. "Thank you for coming." The youngster nodded to the older man and stepped out of the office. The door immediately closed after him.
-THTH-
When Tom entered the hallway where Mr. Greenwich's office was located he found Harry standing in the middle of the corridor with an annoyed expression on his face. The moment the youngster noted him a relieve smile coloured the brunet's face and he stepped towards him.
"That guy really doesn't like me!" the youngster said just above a whisper and the older teen noticed that Harry was panting harder than normally. He narrowed his eyes and eyed the door to the Head Auror's office.
'He's making one mistake after another. I can't find him qualified for the job.' "Let's go home," he decided and wrapped his arm around his boy's waist. Harry didn't have the strength to protest and leaned in to him. Slowly, the future Dark Lord guided his boy to the main hall and almost reached it when suddenly a woman appeared in front of them blocking their way.
"Mr. Riddle and the lovely Mr. Remus," Tom glared at the rude intruder and tightened his grip on the youngster. "I'm Madam Lovegood," blue eyes immediately widened and the future Dark Lord remembered the blonde Ravenclaw girl, "journalist of the Prophet." The woman eagerly smiled at them and the similarity she had had with the young girl they had known was immediately gone.
'Luna was dreamy, this woman is driven.' The future Dark Lord eyed the woman's blonde hair.
"I want to interview the two of you," she went straight to the point and brown eyes met light blue orbs.
"You'll have to contact my office for an appointment!" Tom dismissed her and tried to guide his boy passed her but she sidestepped before him.
"With all due respect, everyone wants your story," her eyes drilled into his, "I just wanted to stand out," she said with a wink before moving out of their way. The politician couldn't help but eye her once more before nodding politely at her and pulling the youngster with him.
"She dares," Harry chuckled and Tom gave him a sideways smile. "Clearly she doesn't care what others think of her." His boy had found the similarity between the two Lovegoods.
"Clearly," he mumbled and stopped before a fireplace.
-THTH-
Brown eyes scanned the scroll in his hands and the politician smiled. All of Crouch's money had been transferred to the bank account of the group. The scroll got put down on the desk underneath it and another scroll rose. The second paper was just a small note that made the smile turn into a smirk. The Crouch family had given their entire support to the future Dark Lord and pleaded for a compromise. He had them. The scroll dropped to the surface of the desk and a new piece of paper got plucked from the block note. He would give the family an allowance in exchange for their services. That way he had complete control over them. It would also be good for his image. Here the Good Samaritan politician is helping the family who had kidnapped him. It would get him more votes. A knock pulled him from his thoughts and he raised his voice allowing his boy to enter. The door opened and Harry's black haired head popped inside.
"Am I interrupting?" he questioned and Tom shook his head as responds. The older teen folded the paper and put it in an envelope before calling Dopper. The house-elf immediately appeared and accepted the letter.
"Send it to the Crouch family!" the future Dark Lord ordered and the elf nodded before disappearing again. The youngster had watched the exchange in silence, only opening his mouth when Dopper had left.
"The Crouch family? Where all of them in on it?" Tom eyes his boy for a moment before answering. Honestly he wanted to tell the truth – like he had been planning too – but now looking into those green trusting eyes made him reconsider.
"The Wizagamot concluded that all of them where in on it, yes." It wasn't a complete lie.
"What do you think?!" The future Dark Lord had to give his boy credit. He wasn't by all means dumb.
"I have my doubts, which is why I'm going to support the family financially."
"Financially?" The youngster's voice sounded confused. Carefully, Tom nodded.
"Yes, their sentence was Azkaban or giving up their rights to their fortune." He didn't have to say the obvious choice.
"Fortune can be made again," Harry mumbled and the other nodded still eyeing the youngster intently. Something suddenly changed in his boy's expression. "Where did the money go?" his voice sounded low.
"Sebastian's will gave it to the group." Green eyes narrowed. "No, I didn't add it to his will." The future Dark Lord gave the other a pointed look. He didn't have too; Sebastian was creepily loyal to the group.
"Okay." Harry's eyes darted away from him in embarrassment, but Tom only found him scarp.
'He knows me,' the voice in his head said happily.
"Did Madam Lovegood contact you?" his boy changed the subject and his eyes returned to the politician.
"Yes, just as a dozen others who want the scoop," the politician answered and his hands automatically went to the pile with letters and notes made by Abraxas. He handed the papers to his boy and watched him flip through them. At one he stopped, reread the previous one before looking back at the next one.
"Why did they contact Abraxas?" Harry frowned and the future Dark Lord realized he still hadn't informed the other about the big shift inside the group.
"I made him my right hand." Green eyes widened in shock at him.
"And the others didn't complain that someone new just swept in and took the job?" Tom gave his boy a look.
"One of my most loyal senior followers kidnapped me and planned to murder you," he stated monotone and the youngster realized his mistake.
"That's a valid point," Harry smiled sheepishly, "and at least you know you can trust Abraxas." The politician nodded in agreement and the other went back to the papers in his hands. "I like Madam Lovegood," Harry announced after reaching the end of the stack. The future Dark Lord smirked at him and the youngster had the dignity to blush a little. His reason was as clear as daylight.
"All right, I'll contact her." Tom gave in. He didn't care who did the interview, he only knew it had to be done.
"Great, I'm going to Floo professor Slughorn." The politician nodded and watched his boy leave. It was good that Harry showed interest in his school work. In a couple of days he was expected to return to Hogwarts. Tom's entire body screamed to not let him go, but obligations had to be met. Having ruined his own mood, the future Dark Lord moved his attention back to the papers in front of him.
-THTH-
"Marvolo!" Ignatius called out the moment Harry stepped inside the common room. Both his friends moved towards him with the other Slytherins following.
"It's great to have you back," Alex smiled and the other students quickly agreed. It didn't take long after that for them to start asking questions. All of them wanted to be the first one to know what had happened. Ignatius and Alex glared at their fellow students and pulled their friend from their midst to his room. Harry was more than glad for their help and relieved opened the door with the intention to hide behind it. But in the doorway his body stopped as his eyes immediately got pulled to his roommate sitting on his bed. Noticing the youngster, Alistair directly stood up and stepped towards him.
"Marvolo," the Stromay's eyes shifted over his whole body and relief settled in his expression, "you're back," he stated the obvious.
"Yes," Harry stepped forward and heard his friends closing the door behind them, "I'm still in need of an education," he joked and received a small smile for his efforts.
"I'm so sorry for everything," Alistair said as he moved closer and the youngster waved his apologies away.
"There was nothing that you could have done."
"No, there's plenty I could have done! I could have made Tristan destroy those papers or could have refused to duel." Guilt was clearly written on the teen's face.
"Sebastian could have done a background check himself and if not for the duel Tom would have been kidnapped somewhere else." Harry countered but his roommate didn't lose any of his guilt. "Could you help me catch up with the classes I missed?" the youngster suggested to change the subject and Alistair eagerly nodded. Harry glanced backwards to his friends and Ignatius nodded in understanding while Alex gave Stromay a criticizing look. Almost shyly Alistair moved to his trunk and started pulling out his notes.
-THTH-
Tom penned down his regards and re-read the letter he had just written. He smirked as he reached the end and called for Dopper. "Send this to Gregory Lestrange!" he ordered handing over the letter to the house-elf. Dopper fiercely nodded before disappearing. In the letter the future Dark Lord informed Lestrange of the Minister's interest and suggested a meeting between the two under his supervision. Things were going his way. With a smile on his face he decided he had done enough for today and pulled out the file of their house-in-building. He looked through his notes and the official papers until he got to the ground plan and laid it opened before him. His mind started creating stories of what would happen once they lived there and with those thoughts clouding his mind he eventually went to bed.
-THTH-
"This looks amazing!" Harry called out as his fingers slid over the surface of the kitchen cabinets.
"I'm glad you like it," Tom smirked at him from the doorway where he was leaning against the frame.
"Has Dopper seen it yet?" the youngster asked to the older teen's surprise, who shook his head as responds. "He really should and he also should check all of the servants' passages. If something needs to be changed, now is the time to do it!" The future Dark Lord simple nodded in agreement. His boy had a point. With a wave of his wand he called for the house-elf without raising his voice.
"Masters need Dopper?" the elf asked with a bow after it popped in.
"Dopper! Welcome to our new home!" Harry called out and the house-elf looked up in surprise. Its eyes almost popped out of its head as the elf looked around them.
"It's beautiful, Masters!" it said stunned and Tom couldn't look away from the youngster's radiating smile.
"It is, isn't it?!" Harry grabbed the house-elf's shoulders and turned it around. "This will be your domain, Dopper! We even had small corridors build in for you so you don't have to use magic the entire time." The youngster released the stunned elf and opened the door hidden in the corner. "Go explore!" Dopper hesitatingly stepped forward. "You can find your own room through here," Harry teased the elf and carefully the house-elf took another step forward, glanced at Tom – who nodded – and suddenly ran into the corridor. "It's like having a kid," his boy sighed as he watched the elf disappear around the corner and the future Dark Lord got the urge to hold him in his arms. He moved to him and did just that. As reaction Harry pecked him on the lips and leaned into his touch. For a moment they stayed like that, enjoying each other presence.
"Do you want to have kids?" Tom suddenly asked as he realized what had brought up the urge to touch the other. His boy looked up in surprise from his chest before frowning.
"You're not going to tell me that it is possible for two men to have a baby together, are you?"
"No, that's impossible."
"Then it doesn't matter." Harry snuggled back against his chest and the future Dark Lord frowned at his lack of answer. "Did you contact Madam Lovegood?" his boy all of a sudden asked and the other nodded, knowing the youngster could feel his chin brush against his forehead. "When will it take place?" Blue eyes glanced upwards.
"If it's all right with you, next weekend." Harry nodded as answer and Tom pressed a kiss to his right eyebrow. His boy blinked as reaction and a smile coloured his face.
"When are we moving in?"
"After your graduation," the older teen had decided this long ago.
"Good idea, I need to study for my N.E.W.T.," Harry agreed and released himself from the other's hold as they heard Dopper return.
"Thank you, Masters! Dopper's honoured! It's amazing!" The house-elf appeared bobbing his head up and down.
"I'm glad you like it," Harry smiled as he slipped his hand in Tom's. "We should be getting back," he glanced at the older teen before addressing Dopper again, "I'll see you after graduation." The house-elf nodded again and with permission from Tom left. "Come on, Dippet must be worried. How did you actually convince him to let me leave Hogsmeade?" Harry returned his attention to the older teen, who gave him a wicked smile.
"Don't ask what you don't want to know," Tom teased him and his boy played hurt.
"I bet you just asked him nicely," the youngster pressed his body against the other's.
"Not that nice." The future Dark Lord's arms wrapped around the other's waist once more.
"You better not!" Jealousy flashed through the blue orbs before Tom's lips got forcefully claimed.
-THTH-
Quietly, Harry was studying with Ignatius and Alex in the library when Perry suddenly dropped his hands on their table demanding their attention. "We need to talk," he stated eyeing the youngster, who simply nodded at his request. His two guards started to get up but Harry signalled them to stay seated. The Weasley led him to an empty classroom and quickly put up silence charms. "What did Riddle do to Greenwich?" the Gryffindor demanded to know and the Slytherin blinked at him in confusion.
"Greenwich?"
"Yes, the man is being fired for incompetence!" Blue eyes kept blinking in surprise.
"And you think Tom caused this?"
"Yes, Harold saw his name in the report! What does he think he's going to get out of this?"
"I don't know," Harry was confused, "Tom didn't say anything."
"He's keeping secrets again? Who would have thought?" the last got said with sarcasm. "He didn't tell you of Crouch's family either, did he?"
"Yes, he did!" Harry shot back and the blue eyes of the other narrowed.
"He told you he got all of them arrested and stole their money?"
"What? Tom didn't get them arrest! The Wizagamot concluded that all of them were in on it."
"And you believe that?" Perry shook his head in disappointment. "I expected better from you." The youngster gave him a look full disbelief.
"You can't really believe that Tom would go that far?" While the words left his mouth he knew the future Dark Lord was more than capable of the allegation.
"Of course, I don't see why suddenly everyone is thinking he's changed!" Perry seemed ready to blow up.
"Everyone?" the Slytherin asked catching the word.
"My brother and Harold don't believe he has that kind of power, but I know he has!"
"Perry..." the youngster sighed, "aren't you being a little paranoid?" The Weasley glared at him.
"I'm not! It seems like I'm the only one who isn't blind to the real Riddle!" Perry ranted and Harry couldn't help but feel pity for him.
"I'll talk to Tom," he suggested and the Gryffindor narrowed his eyes at him.
"He'll lie."
"Then I'll search his office," the youngster raised his voice a little, "if there is anything I'll find it!" Finally Perry seemed to calm down.
"You will," he ended the conversation as voices could be heard coming from the hallway. The Weasley nodded at him before quickly disappearing into the corridor.
'Tom could do all of that, but would he?' Harry hated that he was starting to doubt the man he loved. 'Well, I won't be finding out until after graduation as I'm not leaving Hogwarts or Hogsmeade any time soon,' he shrugged as he took the first step towards the door.
-THTH-
"Thank you for meeting with me," Madam Lovegood had a huge smile on her face as she shook Tom's hand.
"Please, come in," the future Dark Lord invited her into their room at the Cluster's Booth. "Cosy, you're staying here every weekend?" she asked eyeing the politician with interest.
"Yes." The woman seemed to melt a little and turned to Marvolo.
"It's good to see you again, Mr. Remus. I trust your recovery is going well?"
"It is, thank you," Harry smiled at the blonde woman as Tom guided her to the table. All three of them sat down over each other and the journalist pulled out a notebook, a quill and a recorder. Tom gave the muggle toy a look and the woman glanced at them to read their reactions. The youngster was actually really intrigued with the old device and his hand itched to grab it. Lovegood signalled for him to act on his desire and quickly he picked it up. Studying the device he noted it was about the size of his two hands and knew this was actually pretty small for this time.
"I find it a handy gadget. As it let me hear the entire conversation again, I find it better than a quill," the woman explained as Harry pressed some buttons.
"Muggles do have good inventions," Tom said and the youngster smiled at him.
'That's the right answer,' he thought happy.
"I agree." They had passed the woman's test. Giving the recorder back, the journalist pressed the record button before laying it out on the table. "I believe it will be easiest if we start from the beginning. I heard that the kidnapping had taken place during a duel with Alistair Stromay?" The blue eyes flashed between the couple.
"Yes, we were having a friendly duel," Tom admitted and immediately the woman interrupted him.
"Friendly? So it had nothing to do with that Alistair has a thing for Marvolo?" Harry's eyes widened but had to admit that it probably wasn't a secret. Alistair had never been very discreet.
"It did," the future Dark Lord honestly answered to the youngster surprise. "I'm only human," he faked a smile and grabbed Harry's hand on top of the table. Lovegood's eyes automatically moved to the entwined limbs. "I don't want to lose Marvolo and a duel seemed a good way to solve this in a friendly manner." Brown eyes met blue charmed ones and the youngster shyly smiled at him, turning the older teen's smile in a real one.
"Where you winning?" the woman curiously asked as once more she glanced at their hands.
"It could still have gone either way," Tom answered deflecting and Harry had to smile at him.
"You would have won," he answered and the journalist quickly penned something down with a tiny smile on her lips.
"I appreciate your confidence," the future Dark Lord squeezed his hand and the youngster smiled goofy.
"It was a balanced duel then?" Tom simply nodded. "How did the kidnapping take place?"
"I got sedated by use of a dart." The woman's blue eyes widened in surprise. Clearly that hadn't been released yet.
"Didn't you have protection shields up?"
"Yes," the future Dark Lord glanced at Harry, "I dropped them as I had been drawn to Marvolo and wanted to include him in my protection."
"I actually felt the dart fly passed me," the youngster admitted with a guilty look and the older teen raised their hands to press a kiss on the other's fingers. Lovegood was ferociously penning everything down and her eyes kept glancing at them to take in their interaction.
"Why didn't you take him to safety?" she turned to Harry, who gave the future Dark Lord an apologizing look.
"I couldn't leave Alistair behind. He was in just a much danger as us and he could still move. If I moved Tom the risk would be too big that he would get hit, so I figured I get Alistair and bring him to Tom," he explained and Madam Lovegood got a soft look in her eyes.
"You tried to save everyone. Not very Slytherin like," she joked and the youngster felt himself getting a little shy.
"It's just who he is," the future Dark Lord said with a gently smile on his lips while only having eyes for the youngster.
"When I got back to Tom he was gone," Harry quickly continuing with his story. Lovegood turned serious again and quickly took some notes. Next she shifted her attention back on the future Dark Lord.
"What happened when you woke up?"
"My torture started," a faraway look appeared in the politician's eyes and the youngster squeezed his hand as reminder he wasn't alone. Tom smiled at him before turning back to the journalist. "It existed out of two parts. First there were the curses that got casted upon me and second the visions..." Again the brown orbs got that look and Harry pulled the other's arm against his chest.
"What kind of visions?" Lovegood wanted more details and the future Dark Lord turned to look at the youngster.
"They would show me Marvolo with other men." Immediately Harry started shaking his head. "But I knew that he would never do that to me," Tom seemed to come back to reality and released the youngster's hand before raising his fingers to caress the other's cheek.
"The trust the two of you have in each other is remarkable," the blonde woman seemed ready to melt again at their display, "and for good reason as Marvolo was the one who found you. How did you find him?!" she turned her head to Harry again.
"I used a spell, but I'm not at liberty to explain it," the youngster immediately informed her. He didn't want a repeat of Greenwich's interrogation, but the woman seemed to understand.
"I wouldn't want to get you into trouble," she smiled for him to continue.
"Well, we found out Crouch was holding him and got him out," he summed up and Lovegood's blue eyes got a glint in them.
"We?"
"Yes, I had help, but I'm respecting the privacy of my friends." Disappointment took away the glint.
"Why did Crouch show you visions of Marvolo cheating?" her attention went back to Tom.
"He wanted me to kill him," the future Dark Lord simply stated and the woman blinked at him.
"Kill him?! Why would he want that?"
"Crouch wants another Grindelwald, another Dark Lord," Lovegood widened her eyes in horror, "with my new position I became the right candidate." Tom shifted a little on his chair. "I've never been so close to anyone as I'm with Marvolo," he admitted and Harry felt warmth spread through his chest, "and Crouch figured that if I killed him I would turn into a cold hearted monster." A silence fell over the three of them. The youngster knew that Crouch was right with his assumption. Tom would never trust anyone ever again if he betrayed him.
'He would become Voldemort.' A shudder crawled up Harry's spine.
"Well, I do like the title Lord," the politician joked to lighten the mood again and a smile pulled at the others' lips.
"You can be mine Dark Lord anytime," Harry teased him and Madam Lovegood started laughing. The awkward moment had passed.
"Sebastian Crouch got immediately apprehended and just as quickly his whole family got accused of being guilty." Tom nodded with the smile still lingering on his face. "How do you react to the rumour that the family's innocent and their accusation is all of your doing?" The youngster instantly lost all of his laughter as he heard Perry's words.
"It's farfetched," the politician stated. "The Wizagamot have done their research before arresting the entire family. It had nothing to do with me." The journalist briskly turned to the other male.
"What is your standpoint on this, Mr. Remus?" She had startled the youngster and he needed a moment to gather his answer.
"Tom's going to support the family. Why would he do that if he accused them first?" he questioned and got an approving look from the politician.
"Maybe he feels guilty?" Lovegood suggested and he had to laugh.
"Tom only does things that are right in his eyes. He won't have any reason to feel guilty." His answer intrigued the journalist.
"Can I interpret from that that you won't ever go back on your decisions? Even if they're wrong?" the woman turned back to Tom.
"If my decisions are wrong, I'll take full responsibility," he stated and the corner of Lovegood's mouth turned upwards.
"What are your future plans?" she turned to a lighter topic.
"Graduate!" Harry exclaimed making the others laugh.
"Are you going to continue studying or join the politics like Mr. Riddle did?" the youngster was already shaking his head before she had ended her sentence?
"I'm not going in the politics." The blonde smiled at his behaviour. "I'm thinking about maybe becoming an Auror." Tom gave him a surprised look that quickly turned into an approving one.
"With your marvellous rescue, I can picture you as an Auror," Madam Lovegood admitted and Harry felt himself become a little shy.
"With you graduating, do you two have planned anything special?" she asked for deeper intel on their relationship.
"Actually," the youngster turned to Tom, "we'll be moving," the couple smiled at each other.
"We're building," the future Dark Lord explained and the woman's eyes showed enthusiasm.
"Oh, building your dream house! The two of you really are a dream couple," she sighed dreamy and Harry could feel himself blush. Glancing at Tom he noted a happy smile on his face.
"What are your plans for the Group?" Madam Lovegood turned to the politician and it surprised the youngster that she said the Group like it was the actual name.
'Maybe it is?!' he suddenly wondered.
"I'll be revealing the program in a month at the start of our campaign," the politician said short. Lovegood quickly took some notes as Tom rose from his chair.
"Our time's up already?" the journalist asked and the future Dark Lord nodded. "I must say it was a pleasure to be able to interview the two of you," she smiled as she put her stuff away. Following the politician's example she got up and offered her hand. Tom shook it as Harry joined them on their side of the table.
"I wish you all the best in your future career," Lovegood turned to the youngster, who thanked her for her kind words and the future Dark Lord led her outside. Waiting for the older teen to return, the youngster dropped down on the bed and his mind immediately went back to Perry's words.
'It wouldn't make sense that Tom got the whole Crouch family arrested,' he shook his head, but doubt seeped into his mind. Knowing the other, he knew Tom would want to set an example of Crouch. Still why would he offer up the whole family for that? 'No, he wouldn't. It doesn't make sense,' Harry ordered himself to forget it as the handle of the door moved. Without a word the future Dark Lord entered and the other got up from the bed. With a couple of steps he stood before the older teen and pulled him in his arms. Tom seemed surprised by his action but hugged him back either way.
R&R