Chapter 19:
"Harry, isn't it?" came a voice.
Harry looked up, slightly startled to have his space and privacy intruded into by someone who wasn't Tom Riddle.
His current 'visitor' was only marginally more welcome, and, if possible - not that he wouldn't admit to it - ultimately more unwelcome than the Slytherin Heir if he wasn't judging merely on principle.
"Lestrange," he greeted, curtly. "What do you want?"
"I wanted to apologise, I think we got off on the wrong foo-"
"And the real reason you're here?" Harry interrupted, eyebrows arching. "Skip the pleasantries, we both know they're fake."
Lestrange's jaw clenched, his nostrils flaring with annoyance. Harry offered him a disarming, somewhat goading grin in response, though his eyes remained cold.
He'd heard what the Lestrange's had done, and the boy had previously made no effort whatsoever to be friendly to him; this was just suspicious.
"You don't really seem to understand how things work in Slytherin, Evans," the other said icily, sounding marginally disgruntled.
"Neither do you, if you show your emotions so plainly. What is it you want, and maybe we can come to some form of agreement?" Harry offered, honestly just wanting to be left in peace. He found dancing around the issue boring, even he took the trading of information and skills easily enough.
Lestrange stared at him, incredulously, though some of the disdain and contempt was starting to slip from his sneering lips...though Harry suspected that was more from shock than any real change of opinion.
"I don't want you muscling in with Tom and destroying the order of things here," the other replied, after a moment. "He'd only break your heart, anyway, Harry. It's in your best interests really-"
"Fine," Harry cut in again.
"-And I understand that he's quite compelling, but you're just a toy to-what?"
"I said, fine, Lestrange," Harry repeated, rolling his eyes. "I have absolutely no problem with your demand, I have no intention of becoming part of your little group. If you can get him to back off, I welcome it."
Lestrange was still gaping at him, almost blankly, uncomprehendingly.
"You...want him to back off?" he questioned, disbelievingly. "Leave you alone?"
"Congratulations on being able to understand the bloody obvious," Harry replied flatly. "You in on helping me with that? You seem to do such a good job at repulsing him nowadays that you seemed a fitting person to go to for advice."
He could not afford to let Riddle find out more about the future, he just couldn't; he'd been studying the obliviate spell alone in the Room of Requirement, the previous night, and he thought he may have hit upon a possible solution to his problem.
If he could get Tom to forget all about the future, and view him as nothing, or some toy already broken however degrading and galling that was personally, then the timeline would be safe...wouldn't it?
He just needed Riddle to ease up a bit, and not do that intent, studying thing all the time, so he actually had a reasonable chance of success.
He wasn't stupid, tendency to get too close etc aside, Riddle was still wary of him, especially now. He'd laughed off Harry's attack, but those eyes had grown dark and calculating.
As satisfying as winning was, he mostly couldn't quite afford to put all of his effort into it as his success in any battle only increased Riddle's interest - it was like a catch 22.
Losing meant Riddle's aims were furthered, and the Slytherin Heir found out more about Harry and the future...but winning meant Riddle's determination to discover things and Harry's aims of obscurity on a long term basis were obliterated, as much as the the short term success was satisfying.
"I don't repulse him!" Lestrange hissed, furiously. "How dare you - you insolent little brat-" the other made a noticeable effort to calm himself, a mask sliding onto his features, unreadable.
Interesting, it seemed Tom was a push button; but then, all of the baby Death Eaters were unhealthily obsessed with the young Dark Lord.
"I accept your amended proposal," Lestrange continued stiffly. "It seems we are of a similar goal after all." His face relaxed a little bit, after a moment. "You're not so bad afterall, Evans."
"You mean you don't view me as a threat to your position anymore," Harry corrected, rolling his eyes. He couldn't say the same about Lestrange, he still found the boy to be utterly insufferable, even if he'd become potentially useful too. "Have you any interest-sabotaging suggestions then?"
Lestrange cleared his throat, before reaching into his pocket and passing over a...ring.
Harry made no movement to take it, and so Lestrange simply placed it on the library table between them with an irritated clink.
"It's got a subtle repulsion spell on it," the other explained, tersely. "Geared towards Tom. If you wear it, he should subtly begin to leave you alone. Not suddenly, but his interest in you will begin to drop."
Harry looked at it for a moment.
"And how were you initially planning on getting me to wear that?" he asked, a bit too pleasantly.
Lestrange flushed, but offered him a slightly more discerning look.
"You're not as stupid as you look."
"You are," Harry returned, "if you think I would ever accept something like that from you." His brow furrowed, and he tried to tone down his automatic hostility to the name 'Lestrange' a little bit. "...no offence."
"Well considering I don't look stupid, I'll take that as a compliment to my stunning intellectual capabilities," Lestrange snapped, fists balling, before shaking his head. "Do you know how to cast the repulsion charm yourself then?"
"You could teach me," Harry allowed. Lestrange's nose wrinkled, seemingly with disgust, at the very thought.
"I don't like teaching," he replied. "So I guess you'll just have to take the ring."
"Do you have any other suggestions aside from spellwork?"
"Well, I'd suggest acting like you normally do should be deterrent enough, but for some strange reason he seems to find you fascinating and actually like you."
"Second perhaps, I highly doubt the git likes anyone."
Lestrange looked highly offended and disgruntled by that statement, and Harry had to resist the urge to roll his eyes again.
"...except you...? Of course," he added. The other appeared fractionally appeased, though he still eyed Harry with a sort of suspicion.
"I'm his favourite."
And that was what this whole thing was about, wasn't it? Or, at least, Harry thought that was what it was about. Slytherin Politics was a mind screw, there were so many different layers going on, though the one he himself seemed to be getting repeatedly tangled in one was the issue of Tom Riddle and the apparent power and influence of such an association.
Harry would have rather made his own name, then ever clutched to the 'glorious' coat tails of the young Dark Lord.
"Let's pray it stays that way," Harry replied. "Solutions, now, if you want to be useful. I'd try another personality switch, but he'd suspect it now."
"You should have just been yourself in the first place, and not tried for mystery," Lestrange sneered. Harry actually did roll his eyes this time.
"My plans backfired. I was going for pathetic and insignificant."
"Oh, that didn't backfire," Lestrange said. Harry scowled. "Nonetheless, I'll concede to your point," the other continued. "A personality won't do anything, not in the way you were-" the Slytherin cut off, expression suddenly frozen, eyes dark with unhappy thoughts.
Harry studied the other for a moment, before tossing a book at the other, impatiently.
"In the way I was-?" he prompted. Lestrange just shook his head, after a few seconds, dismissively.
"Doesn't matter. Have you considered using notice-me-not charms? Or you know, simply leaving, or even finding other friends."
And then Harry caught up, eyes widening.
"I'm different - interesting to him - because I'm trying to blend, be insignificant...if I start acting like you...trying to get closer...he'll get bored, and leave me alone!"
Perfect.
"I don't think that would work," Lestrange replied firmly. "He'd see through it immediately, and you could get caught up in something you don't want to get caught up in."
"No," Harry corrected, "you just don't want me to try because it involves not immediately fulfilling your desire to have me not mess up the 'natural order' or whatever."
"I could just tell him what you're trying to do," Lestrange reminded.
"Well, yeah...you could, but that would scupper our mutual long term benefit quite significantly, wouldn't it?"
Lestrange glared at him, eyes narrowed, lips pursed.
Harry offered him a blinding grin.
"Teach me how to be a realistic groupie, Cygnus."
Tom looked up, more startled and surprised than he'd care to admit when Harry not only stayed in the Common Room that Friday night, after his normal disappearing act, but, indeed, approached his table.
He was immediately wary, wondering what the game was, and what the other wanted.
The boy had his normal brazen attitude, as shown by the fact he was approaching at all without care to the normal system within their house. No one approached Tom, he called them over or indicated his desire for their presence in some manner, they never just came up to him.
"You guys mind if I sit down with you?" Harry asked, smiling.
At least he was asking permission; but somehow that still didn't sit right in his guts.
His associates stared at Harry stonily, waiting for his approval or disapproval.
"Not at all," he replied, barely missing a beat despite the unexpectedness of the occurrence. "Cygnus, Abraxas, move up," he instructed, with a careless gesture.
Their faces tightened marginally, but they did as told without comment - of course they did. They would never dare disobey him.
Harry sat down, and despite how he appeared externally confident, Tom could see the discomfort in his eyes at being here...so why was he?
"So, Harry, what brings you to my corner of the world again?" he asked, smiling. "I'd been led to believe it would be an unusual occurrence."
The boy seemed to be resisting gritting his teeth, though his face remained expressionless enough, fixed in a vague pleasantness.
"I don't know anyone else in Slytherin really, and had the odd compulsion to be sociable. Don't worry, it disturbs me too," Harry replied dryly.
He eyed the other for a moment, studying him closely, gaze flicking across the rest of his followers too for any hints of foul play or conspiracy.
They stopped on Lestrange for a moment. The boy wasn't protesting nearly as much as he normally did to Evans presence...and while he could have been learning, Tom personally doubted it and was always more likely to err towards suspicion.
"Indeed. I told you that you'd get dragged into my world, darling," he murmured, lightly enough.
"Maybe I'm just here to sabotage you," Harry smirked, so brightly and tauntingly that he couldn't help but suspect an ulterior motive...but was this a persona to deceive? Or an honest answer given on the assumption he would assume persona? His eyes narrowed.
"I would simply love to see you try, pet," he returned. Harry looked about ready to punch him for the name, but, instead of his eyes darting away as he struggled to control his temper, his eyes didn't move. No, his gaze stayed fixed on Tom, almost too fixed, as if he was deliberately not looking elsewhere...
But then, he didn't tend to stare at Harry too...
His eyes gleamed as he felt another game start to come along, because he didn't think for one second Harry was here for anything less than his own end game and aims. There was too much fire in him, and too much at stake.
But one day he'd be coming to Tom just because he wanted to, because he was desperate for his attention just like everyone else.
It was an almost regrettable victory, but a victory nonetheless and he would never settle for anything less.
"I'll take that as a challenge," Harry smirked.
"By all means, if you have no objection to failing miserably," Tom dipped his head, in a mockery of courtesy. They regarded each other for a moment.
And then the conversation moved on, and he kept a careful control of it.
It was only later, much later, when the atmosphere had relaxed but for the smallest levels and spikes of tension in the room. He privately thought Harry made quite addition to his little group, especially on the scant few moments or so when he seemed to actually enjoy himself genuinely with the exchange of quips.
Then he would refer to an even greater level of ice, guardedness, and false ease.
However, whilst he took satisfaction from seeing his latest project smoothing out nicely, his favourite part was still when he yanked all comfort away as they were all finally departing for bed for the night.
Of course, he didn't know Harry's specific plan, but judging by his previous attempts, it was easy enough to guess.
"Risky tactic, sweetheart, pretending to enjoy my company...you might just find the lies become you."
Harry stilled for a moment, before his head turned to face Tom, eyebrow raised.
"I could say the same about you letting me close, Riddle. You're opening yourself up for attack."
"No one gets truly close to me," Tom chuckled, softly. They thought they did, they all thought they were the ones who had something of him that no one else did, that they were special, but they were all just putty in his hands.
"None of them do," Harry replied, equally softly. "But I'm not one of them, am I? I know you, Tom Riddle, and I know what you become and everything you're capable of."
His amusement drained at the words, and he eyed the other, like a snake weighing up its opponent in battle.
"Interesting assumption."
"Fact, actually," Harry corrected mildly.
"Can you get close to me without my working you out though, Evans?" he dared. "That's why you're here today...to get close to me, isn't it?"
He wasn't quite sure how that linked into Potter's plans, but he was determined to find out, and would either way bluff absolute confidence and omniscience.
Harry remained stoic, but his eyes flicked involuntarily . He'd played the Lion he'd been for so long - bless.
"We'll see," Harry shrugged, turning away from him once more.
Tom smiled thinly.
It was odd to be playing when the two of them were both so intently aware of the board being there, but, in a way, all the more fun for it...
He'd known this was going to be fun.
"Goodnight, Harrison."
A/N: Not my best chapter, I will admit, but not too shabby either. Hope you enjoyed it :) Thanks for the reviews, this one's currently ranking as the story of mine that you would want to see the most of 3
Novel...still coming soon. I'm going to do a burst of stuff with it, tomorrow. It's currently getting proofread/edited etc. After that's done, I can publish in like day I think...we shall see. Anyway. Blood Lines, coming soon.