Guys. And gals. And goats. Though I doubt goats read. But anyway. Thank you so very much for the feedback, you are absolutely amazing. Every time I saw a new follow or fav I jumped up from my chair and squealed like a crazy fangirl. Virtual hugs to you all.

So...here we go I guess.

Disclaimer: I don't own Harry Potter. Now lemme go in my emo corner and cry about it, 'kay?

Tom waited, somewhat irritably but with a growing interest, for the auburn-haired man in robes to finish his explanation.

He did absolutely not glance smugly at Harry.

Really, this was important! As obvious as it always had been that there was something more to himself and Harry, he was finally, finally discovering what. His entire life was about to change, and it turned out many things weren't quite how he imagined them- he should be curious- he was, terribly so, but-

Well, other things kept popping in his head, irritatingly all revolving around Harry. Like how he'd grin proudly and say, "I told you so." once the man had left, or trying to imagine what his friend was thinking about this right now or whatever.

And really, it was very hard to focus when every ten bloody seconds a new Harry-centric thought flooded his mind!

Damn his moronic friend to hell. And back. Because he obviously wasn't allowed to stay there, or any place that Tom wasn't, for the matter.

It wasn't helping either that he had a sneaky feeling if he had not met Harry, this conversation would be going very differently. This was far greater than he had imagined, and there were so many possibilities...It already was hard to not let his excitement get the best out of him, to not let something slip, but if he hadn't encountered someone like himself before...

In any case, Tom didn't like the Professor, as the man called himself. Maybe it was the fact that he'd set his wardrope on fire, when there had been numerous other, less provoking ways to prove he was magical, or it could be the slightly patronizing, supposedly reassuring tone and expression of the other.

The Professor didn't seem to very much like Tom either, though to his credit- hesitantly given- it wasn't very showing. But there was wariness, obviously, and admittedly that wasn't unexpected with what the matron had presumably told him about Tom.

He was a hypocrit if Tom ever saw one. Idly, he wondered what Harry thought of the man- and damnit, he was thinking about Harry again.

But honestly, Harry was far too trusting of people, and Dumbledore hadn't decided to assault his belongings, and he was a wizard after all, so there was a strong chance his friend would like the man. Tom did not aprove. At all.

Finally, the Professor gave them directions to Diagon Alley- he was not amused by his synonimity with a bartender, of all people- and did them the courtesy of leaving them alone already. Tom scowled after him.

Harry blinked at him. "We haven't started Hogwarts yet and you're already making a Professor your enemy? Really?"

Well, maybe Harry sort of had a point there.

Harry had barely managed to supress a, "Oh shit, Tom what did you do now?" when he was called in his friend's room, where the other was sitting accompanied by a man, who called himself a Professor, and was most probably colour-blind if the robes he was wearing were anything to go by.

When the Professor started talking about magic and a school called Hogwarts...for a milisecond, he wanted to protest that it wasn't possible, that magic didn't exist, and even if it did it had nothing to do with him, but...Well, it actually made sense. The things he and Tom could do, was that magic?

It was astonishing, overwhelming; an entire magical community, where what he and Tom were would not be abnormal and freaky, and so much more to learn about magic, and so many people out there who were magical too and-

To say that it was a lot to take in would be an understatement.

But judging by the fact that Tom and the Professor had somehow managed to dislike each other in less than half an hour, it probably wouldnt't be all rainbows either. And Harry was not ready to make enemies and get in fights before they even started, damnit.

"We haven't started Hogwarts yet and you're already making a Professor your enemy? Really?"

Tom just gave him a shrug. " I don't like that man. Be careful around him."

"You like no one, that doesn't mean they're all out to get us," Harry argued.

"Hello, no one."

"Ha-freaking-ha. Hilarious, Riddle."

They both glared sullenly for a moment, before breaking into grins. Fine, he grinned and Tom gave a smug little smile, but the point remained. Really, Harry doubted he could get worked up if he tried; he felt so delighted and anxious that he could hardly think straight.

Magic. A school of magic. They would be going to a school of magic.

"Don't believe me, Harry?" Tom questioned, sniffing mockingly. "I'm sure I could convince you."

Harry was pretty damn sure of that, too. And while the gleam in Tom's eyes was just a tad bit flustering, it was incredibly satisfying to know he was the exception in his friend's belief that absolutely everyone on the planet was to be sneered at. Even if Tom really shouldn't believe that in the first place...

He gave Tom a coy look. "What, that I'm no one? That would be a bit counterproductive, since you've been trying to convince me I'm special for years."

"And it was just proven to you today," Tom pointed out, slyly. "By the way- I told you so. Therefore, since everyone but you and I are dull and boring, and we are special, it is perfectly reasonable that I dislike everyone but you."

He was not supposed to feel touched by that, damnit.

Harry frowned. "...But I thought we're special because of our abilities- our magic? So that would make other magical people special too?"

And it wasn't like he didn't want them to be, exactly...Of course he'd be delighted to meet all these amazing magical people, and of course he wanted the two of them to be accepted in the magical community, and of course he wanted Tom to see that not everyone was horrible, but...

The idea of someone becoming as special to Tom as he was made him feel like he'd been punched in the stomach.

It was utterly absurd, because he didn't even view himself as something significant, and there probably were tons of greater people out there, and Tom was bloody amazing and he deserved the best, but he was Harry's best friend, damnit.

"Partially," Tom allowed. "They're still nowhere near us, though. No one ever will be."

"You can't know that, you've never met them," Harry argued half-heartedly.

"I know what we are like. And if you even suggest that anyone else could be what we are, I'm going to strangle you with your own blanket."

Startled, Harry realized that Tom must have been having the same uneasy thoughts with him. Despite the icily uttered threat and dangerous flash of his friend's eyes, Harry found himself beaming.

"Point taken. I don't think you'd do it, though. You'd be terribly bored if I died."

"Hmm. Who knows? I could always find a way to bring you back later."

Sadly enough, Harry was pretty sure that Tom wasn't joking at all.

Albus Dumbledore was intrigued by the boys- but he was concerned, too.

Tom Riddle and Harry Potter.

Tom had spent his entire life at the orphanage, and Harry had mysteriously appeared there five years ago, the matron had informed him. The former had been a flat-out antisocial and isolated child, but at the latter's appearance they had immediately formed an unusual friendship.

He noticed the way the matron stiffened and hesitated at the word 'friendship', but that was hardly the problem.

The problem was that each boy individually was an enigma, and together...

Both of them were powerful, but Tom seemed more prone to use that power to get his way, with few if any moral restrictions. Aggressive, though he could definitely mask it. The same couldn't be said about Harry. He seemed to be a sweet child, a bit wary and guarded maybe.

And then there was the fact that Harry, clearly a magical child of eleven, had not been in the Hogwarts records. Dumbledore had learned about the boy when talking with the matron about Tom, and he was still unsure just how this had happened. And a Potter? Synonymities were rare to nonexistent in the magical community, and the boy definitely looked like one.

That would have to be looked into.

He was worried, and he was bewildered. Both boys had control of their magic way beyond the average eleven year old magical child, and he wasn't certain at all it would be used correctly, if the two were left to their own devices. He'd given Tom a warning- for he was the cause for the vast majority of unpleasant incidents- but how the boy had taken, it he could only wait and find out.

They influenced each other, that was much clear, and it would be a good thing if only he could find it in himself to believe that Tom would be positively influenced by Harry, not vice versa. He had too much personal experience to believe that.

However...he could not condemn two eleven year old children because of his own mistakes. He would watch them silently, lend a helping hand where he could, step in only if things got out of hand.

But mainly, he would hope.

And maybe the two mysterious children were actually a blessing, in a way.

He'd had nothing to hope for in a long time.

Since Arianna's death, namely.

Newspapers were spread all over the desk.

The latest one of them was a few days old; there was nothing of significance in most recent ones for Gellert Grindelwald to bother acquiring, much less reading them. The pictures in them were unmoving, irritatingly reminding them man of their non-magical nature.

To have to read Muggle newspapers. Honestly.

The content was somewhat satisfying, at least; it probably was unnoticeable to most, but Gellert could read between the lines, and what he reads were signs of an upcoming war. And it could most definitely be used.

By the time his own plans had succeeded and the Stature of Secrecy had crumbled, the Muggles would be just out of a quite possibly highly destructive war, shaken, unbalanced, doubting and blaming current authorities...and then wizards would step into the picture, to seize control and put an order to things like the superior beings they were. It would be glorious.

Of course, originally he'd meant to take actions only after he had collected all three hallows, but when such an opportunity presented itself...Gellert didn't mind adapting. He already had ownership and mastership of the Elder Wand, anyway- it should be enough to defeat anyone in his way.

Except, maybe, for his former best friend and partner, but that was something Gellert would rather not think about until it became absolutely necessary. And it wasn't yet, because if he knew Albus half as well as he thought he did, the man wouldn't be coming after him anytime soon.

Perhaps Albus felt content playing the good little teacher, but some hesitant affection for him, or at least sympathy for their used-to-be-common cause had to remain, and coupled with the fear of learning who had been the one to kill Albus' sister- Gellert couldn't even remember the girl's name, much as he tried. No, he wouldn't be a problem anytime soon.

Besides, he had a new, very promising lead for where the Invisibility Cloak may be.

I'm not sure it says a good thing about me that so far, I enjoy writing from Tom's and Gellert's pov more than anyone's. It's just so fun.

I'm not very happy with this, and the whole matter of Harry not being in the Hogwarts records will need elaboration, but...I'll just say that he wasn't in the records because he technically wasn't born in 1926, so he wasn't written down then, and Dumbledore just realized he was a wizard when he was talking with Mrs. Cole. Make any sense?

Anyway, this was the chapter, I hope you guys (and gals and goats) enjoyed :D