Harry's POV;
"Mr. Peverell, please stay after class."
Harry frowns but nods at Dumbledore before turning to Charlus and Hector, who had been sitting next to him during Transfiguration.
"I'll see you in the Great Hall." He tells them.
"Are you sure, Hadrian?" Charlus asks while shooting a quick look at Dumbledore.
Harry hides his smirk. The guys in the dorm didn't like the fact that Dumbledore had hurt Harry, even if he was aiming for a Slytherin. That shouldn't be accepted at all, according to them.
Harry is quite relieved that the Gryffindor and Slytherins in this time are a lot more tolerable of each other than in the future. He hopes he can change it so the rivalry he grew up with will not be there. It should just be a friendly school competition, not a line no one dared to cross for friendship, only for angry insults and hexes.
"Yes, I'll be fine. Keep some Treacle Tart apart for me."
Charlus lights up. He loves Treacle Tart almost as much as Harry does. "Sure, mate!"
Then they nod and leave, meanwhile, Harry is pushing his emotions behind his Occlumency walls. He doesn't want Dumbledore to know how much he loathes him.
When the class is empty of students, he turns to his old Headmaster. It's still a bit jarring to see Dumbledore this young. His eyes focus on the man's nose. Even if his Occlumency walls have drastically improved, he doesn't trust the Professor not to try anything.
"Mr. Peverell, I just wanted to check if everything is alright. I was distraught when I hit you with the spell, that was not intended, and I wanted to offer my sincerest apologies." Dumbledore says with his hands clasped in front of him. His robes are red today with yellow stripes—quite Gryffindorish.
Harry turns his head down a bit and bites his lip. "I know, sir. Thank you for apologizing," He replies without offering anything more. Knowing that Dumbledore knows it's an insult because he doesn't offer his forgiveness.
It's silent for a moment. Dumbledore is clearly waiting for more before he sighs.
"That's not the only reason I wanted you to stay back."
"Sir?" Harry asks with a frown, curious about what Dumbledore wants.
"You see, I want to... warn you in a way."
Harry blinks a couple of times. "Warn me for what, sir?"
Dumbledore gestures to the chair in front of his desk, and Harry reluctantly takes a seat.
Dumbledore leans against his desk with his arms crossed, looking troubled.
"I want to warn you against competing against Mr. Riddle next Thursday."
Harry bites his cheek, just succeeding in biting back an angry retort.
"Why don't you want me dueling against Riddle? Sir?" He adds as an afterthought.
Dumbledore looks out of the window until he starts talking again. "Mr. Riddle is a very - troubled young man. I am afraid that if you best him in a duel, there will be repercussions that cannot be controlled."
Harry can't believe his ears. How can Dumbledore just say that about another student? Had he always been like this? Harry knows he only saw the best in the man once upon a time and has quite come back from that, but this is ridiculous. He deliberately paints Tom as some kind of villain.
But he always does this, doesn't he? No wonder Tom couldn't find another job than working at Borgin's and Burke as a clerk. While he could've done anything if he put his mind to it.
Did Dumbledore use his influence to block Tom from the Ministry? Harry already knows he blocked Tom's tries to become a Professor. He literally saw that memory from Dumbledore himself.
Did Dumbledore create Voldemort?
This flashes through his head quickly. He's afraid he already knows the answer. Didn't he do the same to Harry? Didn't he create the Boy-who-lived? Didn't he make sure Harry would die? No matter what?
Harry feels sick just thinking about all the young children Dumbledore has influenced over the years. He needs to make sure Dumbledore gets out of Hogwarts as soon as possible. He shouldn't be allowed to be around children!
Harry tries to sound as indignant as possible when he replies. "You aren't suggesting to just throw the dueling competition, sir? I'm afraid I can't do that. I have my pride!"
Dumbledore chuckles, and Harry does his best not to cringe.
''Ah, yes, the Gryffindor pride. I should've known better." He tells Harry with a smile. Harry smiles back, hoping it isn't a grimace.
"You really should, sir. You're a Gryffindor yourself," Harry jokes, hoping to get Dumbledore a bit more relaxed.
It's definitely working if Dumbledore's face is an indication.
''You're right, my boy-'' Harry does his best not to flinch. ''-I wouldn't back down either. But please, be careful after the duel. I'm afraid of what Mr. Riddle is capable of when his ego is bruised."
Harry smirks. "It does seem you have some confidence in me to win from him, though. I'll take that as a compliment."
Dumbledore beams, and his eyes twinkle. Harry wants to be sick. "As you should, my boy. As you should, your dueling skills were inspiring. I do have a question about the sword you got from Hogwarts herself. Do you have any idea where it came from?"
He's clearly on the edge of his seat for answers, but Harry will not indulge. He shrugs.
"Don't know, sir. It was very convenient though, so I didn't mind."
Dumbledore deflates but still smiles.
"Do you mind if I go, sir? I want to get some lunch before I need to go to Potions."
"Of course, my boy, go, go eat something, and don't forget the homework I've assigned." He says with a wink before gesturing for Harry to leave. Harry gives him a smile before quickly walking out of the classroom. As soon as he's out of the corridor of the Transfiguration classroom, he ducks into an alcove and casts a silencing charm. He then screams in frustration.
"I want to kill him so, so, so bad!" He says to himself while calming down. He can understand why Voldemort hated Dumbledore so much. Harry, at eleven, thought that Voldemort was scared of Dumbledore, but now, now he knows that the hatred Voldemort felt wasn't because he was afraid. The contempt held for his old Professor was justified.
Dumbledore describes Tom as a troubled kid when he's just sixteen, and he has done that since Tom had been eleven! Harry can remember the memory of Dumbledore's first visit to Tom quite well.
He also remembers Dumbledore questioning him.
"Could you possibly be feeling sorry for Lord Voldemort?"
When Dumbledore asked that the first time Harry had been still full of rage against Voldemort, he didn't want to be compared to Voldemort, he didn't want to feel sorry for him. But it was clear to him now that Dumbledore manipulated him back then.
Tom isn't Voldemort, and Harry will make sure Tom will never turn into that crazy psychopath, either. He sighs heavily, he hopes that Tom will call him for training tonight, but maybe he will go blast at some dummies even without Tom.
He waves his hand to dispel the silence spell and steps out of the alcove, only to walk straight into a hard chest.
''Mhph!'' Harry stumbles back a step, and two strong hands hold him steady. ''I'm sorry. I didn't see you there. Are you okay?'' A smooth voice questions him, and Harry looks a bit up at the boy in front of him.
Harry blinks for a moment because the boy looks a lot like the pictures he had seen in Grimmauldplace back when he had been living there. He bites his tongue not to blurt out the name that came to his mind. Because Regulus Black hasn't been born yet, and he surely isn't at Hogwarts right now.
The boy raises an eyebrow, and Harry blushes a bit. ''Sorry! I'm fine. I didn't look where I was going,'' He admits sheepishly while scratching the back of his head.
The boy in front of him smirks. ''No problem, I don't mind catching you,''
Harry doesn't know how to react and chuckles a bit awkwardly.
''Where are my manners?! My name is Alphard Black. Well met,'' Black says with an outstretched hand. Harry clasps his wrist as is Pureblood tradition. ''Hadrian Peverell, well met.''
Black bites his bottom lip for a moment and lets his hand linger. Harry wants to know why but doesn't question it. ''Where you on your way to the Great Hall for lunch?''
Harry nods with a small smile. ''Yes, I am.''
Black grins, and Harry sucks in a breath. Alphard looks a lot like Regulus, but that grin is all Sirius.
Harry's heart hurts momentarily, but he doesn't let it show.
''Let me escort you then,'' Harry raises his eyebrows. ''I do know the way, you know, even if I'm new.''
Alphard puts his hand on his heart and gapes dramatically. ''I wasn't implying you didn't, but walking with such a lovely boy like you is a privilege I rather wish to have.''
Harry sputters and blushes again. What the hell is wrong with him?!
''Uh, what? Lovely?''
Alphard winks and holds out his arm as if Harry is some damsel in need of it.
''Yes, those pretty eyes deserve only the best of compliments, so I surely hope you'll indulge me.''
Harry doesn't think he can get any redder, but his face is clearly trying.
''S-sure,'' He does ignore the arm, but Alphard doesn't seem to mind and walks in step with him towards the Great Hall. He seems to notice that Harry isn't comfortable with the compliments and starts talking about random stuff. How he's in Slytherin 7th year, how his older sisters are hags (Harry already knew that, of course, with Walburga being his sister), and what Harry thought about Hogwarts so far. Black just kept talking, making Harry slowly relax more and talk back. When they finally reached the Great Hall, Harry was laughing, and Alphard looked smug while smiling broadly.
''No way! She did not say that,''
''I swear to you, she did. And then Orion made a rude comment, and she hexed him so bad he needed to go to St. Mungos. I don't think his pubes will ever be the same color ever again.''
Harry threw his head back and laughed again. The Black's were clearly a chaotic bunch. They love their drama.
''Do you want to sit with me and my family, Hadrian?'' Alphard asked with puppy dog eyes. Harry rolled his eyes. ''Not today. My friend is holding back some Treacle Tart for me,'' He replied, smiling.
Alphard sighed dramatically before grabbing Harry's hand and kissing it. Harry again turned an ugly shade of red and quickly pulled his hand back when Alphard's lips left his knuckles.
''See you soon then, Hadrian.''
Harry rolled his eyes. ''Bye, Alphard, and watch out, your sister seems ready to spit fire.'' He said with a grin before making his way to the Gryffindor table. He completely ignored the stares he got from the students that saw what happened between Alphard and him.
He sat next to Hector and across from Bill, Charlus, and Pollux. He still hadn't warmed up to Pollux, but they were friendly enough to each other.
''What was that!?'' Bill hissed with wide eyes.
Harry rolled his eyes. ''Alphard just wanted to mess with his sister. Unfortunately, he used me for that,'' He told them with a grimace.
''Uhuh, just watch out, Hadrian. Alphard Black tries to work through all four of the houses, witches and wizards alike.'' Hector told him sincerely.
''Noted,'' Harry replied before digging into his lunch. He wasn't interested, sure Alphard was a laugh, but Harry didn't even know for sure if he was really into boys. His past crushes had been women, even if he could admit that he thought some men had been handsome. Cedric and Draco were prime examples. And Tom, of course. He shook his head. He shouldn't think that sort of stuff.
He knew Tom wanted him in his bed, but he would never beg Tom to kiss him, even if it felt really good if they were close or touched accidentally.
Alphard was also handsome, but he looked a bit like Sirius, and Harry didn't know if he could put that out of his mind.
But maybe, if he wanted to experiment, he could do that with Alphard, he mused to himself. He would think about it. If Alphard really had been with so many others, he probably wouldn't mind.
Tom's POV;
With a quick silent Finite, Tom canceled the conjured ropes that Belbey tried to trap him with. He then shot an Orbis to the Ravenclaw seventh year. Unfortunately, she sidestepped and retaliated with a Langlock .
He was hit, but he didn't need to speak his spells out loud, so even if she thought he would have a handicap with this spell, he could still take her quite easily.
He quickly cast a Furnunculus at her, making her shriek in pain and outrage. He smirked at her making her glare at him before she shot Ebublio back at him, but he used Protego to cancel it.
He then casted Densaugeo , making her front teeth grow until they were beneath her chin. While she was distracted, he bound her with Brachiabindo , and Accio'ed her wand.
Applause met him, and he smiled indulgently before bowing to his opponent and the audience.
''10 points for Slytherin for wordless casting and making me laugh when her teeth grew beneath her chin!'' Professor Merrythought yelled over the noise. Tom almost rolled his eyes but contained it just in time.
''3 points for Ravenclaw for being vindictive enough to set his pants on fire!'' She then gleefully declared.
Tom looked down and tried to curse, only to do it in his head when he noticed his tongue was still stuck to the roof of his mouth. He quickly put out the fire, thankfully it was just a tiny fire, and only the bottom part of his left trouser leg was singed.
He glared at Belbey again but saw she was way worse off in comparison to him. Thankfully he got a whole new wardrobe from Hadrian this summer. He wouldn't have any other pants otherwise. Tom would've needed to repair this set, but with his new wardrobe and vault that Hadrian had set up for him alone, he could just owl order a new one.
Tom stepped up to the Healer, who, with just a quick flick of her wand, unstuck his tongue.
''Mr. Riddle, were there any other hexes that needed to be treated?'' She asked with a friendly smile. Tom shook his head. ''No, thank you, Madame,''
He glanced over the stands and scowled when he saw Alphard Black sitting next to Hadrian. He didn't know when that happened, but for some reason, they were all buddy-buddy now. Tom hated it.
Alphard fucked everything that had a hole and said yes, and the way he looked at Hadrian... Let's just say that he hoped that the Black's wouldn't lose a member.
It doesn't matter what kind of member he was thinking about.
Most of the Black's were wary of him, only Orion was somewhat friendly towards him, but the Black's were very close.
Much too close if you ask Tom. Marrying their own cousins was just disgusting. It reminded him of his Mother's family. If Merope hadn't run when his uncle and grandfather had been arrested, she probably would've needed to marry her brother.
That thought brought shivers that ran uncomfortably through his body. Hadrian had talked to him many times about why it was a good thing his father had been Muggle because if he hadn't, Tom probably would've been a Squib.
Truly something he didn't want to think about.
And if he thought back on how Miss Cole had described his Mother, he was glad he had his father's looks. The only thing the man had been good for.
The next couple of duels were boring. Nobody interesting was dueling, but Tom still watched. Abraxas had been before him and would need to duel in the next round, Hadrian still needed to duel, and most of his Knights couldn't even join in the tournament. There were only four from each year. Hadrian, Alexander Nott, Emma Wright, and he had been it for their year. Wright had won against a fifth-year, and Alexander had won against a fourth-year. He didn't care that it wasn't fair to put fourth-years against a sixth-year, but that was Merrythought's doing. Of course.
''Next up, Hadrian Peverell, sixth-year Gryffindor, against Iolda Vector, seventh-year Hufflepuff,'' Merrythought announced, and Tom finally paid attention to the dueling platform again.
He had heard about Vector from Abraxas. Apparently, she was pretty good. Her father was an Auror and had trained her. Even if she was a Hufflepuff, he knew Badgers could be vicious when cornered.
But he still thought that she wouldn't be a problem for Hadrian.
They bowed, and Vector immediately went on the offensive. She was casting wordlessly, so he didn't know exactly what she was casting, and with Hadrian dodging like he always did, no spell stuck to see what would've happened.
Hadrian seemed to observe while dodging, though, and shot a Levicorpus at the woman's left foot, she quickly stopped it with a Protego , but Hadrian took advantage while she was on the defensive.
The speed at which he started casting couldn't be compared to any others he had seen tonight; he himself hadn't even cast this fast. He hadn't needed it.
''Let's go! Her right side is open, Peverell, use it!''
''Constance! That's favoring,'' Dippet scolded his Professor, not that Merrythought cared, of course.
''I know! He is making sure that everyone gets good for their money. Just wait until Riddle and Peverell are standing in front of each other!''
Riddle hid his smirk behind his hand while listening to his Headmaster and Professor.
''Wha- You have people paying to see the competition?'' Dippet sputtered. Professor Merrythought raised an eyebrow at Dippet.
''You thought that only students were attending?'' Merrythought drawled.
Dippet was clearly flustered and started looking around. Tom had, of course, seen the witches and wizards that mostly sat in the top ring of the stands. Nott had even started a betting pool with the outsiders for some extra coin.
He even saw the Black family up there, even if not one of the Black's attending school were participating.
''That reminds me, you didn't pay admission.'' Merrythought narrowed her eyes at Dippet.
Dippet gaped at her. ''I'm the Headmaster!''
She held out her hand, ''Pay up!''
Blustering, Dippet did as asked and paid Merrythought a Galleon. She grinned, bit into the coin as if testing if it was real, and quickly put the coin in her purse, smirking all the while.
Tom focused back on Hadrian and saw that the man was clearly winning. And just as Tom thought that - Hadrian used an overpowered Expelliarmus . Vector was thrown back, and her wand flew to Hadrian, who quickly caught it with two fingers and spun the wand cockily in his hand.
Hadrian bowed to the audience because Vector was unconscious by the looks of it. He got cheers from everyone except the Knights and the Hufflepuff students, who were clearly worried about their housemate.
Hadrian stepped off the platform and locked eyes with Tom. He came striding to him with a smirk.
''Quite vicious of you, Peverell,'' Tom drawled.
Hadrian shrugged. ''She was trying to unrobe me for at least six minutes. I was done playing.''
Tom glanced at the still-unconscious Hufflepuff. ''Served her right then.'' He murmured so only Hadrian would hear him.
Hadrian shrugged again. ''Say, how much do you want to bet that Merrythought has rigged who is against who so we will end up in the finale?''
Tom scoffed. ''That's a suckers bet. You know she has it rigged.''
Hadrian grinned at him, and Tom swallowed. He was still waiting for Hadrian to make the first step, but when Tom saw Hadrian so powerful in his magic, he just wanted to pin him against a wall and ravage him.
Alas. He will wait.
He liked it when his partner begged for him to touch them. Knowing it would be special and intense. Mostly because he only touched others with purpose.
The second round of dueling began, and this time Tom was against Wright. He made quick work of her. Even if she was good enough for regular dueling, she was no match for Tom.
Nott got kicked out of the tournament by McGonagall. And now Abraxas was against Hadrian.
For some reason, Hadrian seemed more severe than in his other duels. Maybe he knew not to underestimate a Malfoy.
Abraxas put up a good fight, but he was no match for Hadrian, especially not when Hadrian conjured birds that attacked Malfoy's long blonde hair.
Abraxas was fuming when he got off the platform but with one look from Tom. He calmed down a bit, but Tom could tell he would hear about it later and sighed.
There were just four students left now, McGonagall, for some reason, a fifth-year Tom didn't know the name of, Hadrian and himself.
Hadrian was put against McGonagall, and Tom was curious about how that duel would end. He knew Hadrian would win, but Hadrian had told him how McGonagall had been one of his favorite teachers in his time, and now she was his Quidditch Captain. He just hoped Hadrian's fond emotions wouldn't get in the way of his casting.
But first, it was Tom's turn against the fifth-year Ravenclaw. His name was Diggory, but that didn't matter to Tom. He started strong, Tom needed to admit that, but it became obvious quickly that he wasn't a match for Tom, so with a strong bat bogey hex and an Accio , Tom had won that duel.
The fifth-year only had duels against lower years until now, so it wasn't a shame for him that he had lost, even if the boy looked quite sullen.
McGonagall and Hadrian entered the platform and bowed deeply to each other, clearly respecting each other, probably because of Quidditch on McGonagall's side.
It was no surprise that McGonagall started with Transfiguration. She tried with Avifors to transform Hardrian's tie into a flock of birds. But Hadrian countered it quickly.
Hadrian used mostly prank spells, which was kind of becoming his trademark during the dueling competition. It did help with distracting the opponent.
With Muto , he turned McGonagall's robes pink with green polka dots before turning her hair a rather vibrant shade of red and gold with Crinus Muto. He then thought better of it and turned her hair into tulips, much to McGonagall's embarrassment.
None of her spells had hit Hadrian until now, and he began burping up bubbles. Hadrian pulled a face, probably because of the taste of the bubbles, and Finite'd the spell silently.
''You better amp it up, you imp! Or I'll give you detention for the next four months!'' Professor Merrythougt yelled from the sidelines, making most of the hall burst out in laughter, thinking she was joking.
Obviously, she was not. But only her students seemed to know this, according to their grimaces.
Thankfully, Hadrian took her seriously too. He used a Fumos and disappeared in the smoke. McGonagall was looking around her widely to locate Hadrian but without any luck. A red spell, which Tom was pretty sure was a Stupefy , hit her in the chest, and her wand flew up. With a wave of magic, the smoke disappeared, showing Hadrian holding the wand after a silent Accio .
He got a well-deserved applause. Most people wouldn't have been able to maneuver through the smoke, even if they had conjured it themselves.
''Now, my favorites in the final battle! Who wants to place bets!'' Merrythought amplified her voice through the Hall, making most scramble towards her to place bets while Tom and Hadrian made themselves ready to duel.
''You cannot bet on the students, Professor!''
''Five points from Ravenclaw, Miss Opal!''
The girl looked almost in tears but accepted her fate.
Tom focused back on the boy in front of him with a smirk. He only dropped it when he saw Hadrian talking with Alphard Black.
Black touched Hadrian's shoulder and stroked down his arm before winking at Hadrian. Hadrian rolled his eyes and turned to Tom.
''Ready Riddle?''
Tom shook himself out of murderous thoughts before nodding to Hadrian. ''Of course, Peverell.''
Hadrian had told him about Dumbledore's warning. Tom hadn't expected anything else from the bastard, but their plan was on the way. He just needed to wait for a little while longer before he could blast the meddling arsehole from this planet.
''Okay!'' Merrythought got their attention, and they both looked to their teacher. She was wringing her hands with a big demented grin. Tom didn't know what she was expecting, but she was looking forward to it. ''I want an exciting fight, don't hold back, but don't kill each other. Do we understand each other?'' She looked like Yule had come early, which probably had for her. She had gotten a lot of Galleons from this tournament. And the first price was just five Galleons for the winner. She had just earned her own Yule bonus with this tournament.
They both gave her an affirmative answer and turned towards each other; they bowed normally, not too deeply, even if they did respect each other; they couldn't let anyone know just yet.
Tom grinned. He was going to win today. He could just feel it.
Harry's POV;
Tom grinned at him, and Harry just knew that the Slytherin wouldn't pull his punches. Not that Harry wanted him to do so. Because he was here to win too.
He started with an Obscuro to blind Tom for a moment, hoping to get some advantage, but Tom sidestepped the spell. A blue spell sped at him, but he used a Protego to stop it. The spells were coming faster and faster, and Harry grinned when Tom's hair turned purple. It was just unfair that the git still looked attractive.
Harry used his Patronus to distract Tom, and it worked, but mostly because Prongs was annoying and very strong for a Patronus. Tom dispelled Prongs with a Glacius , Harry didn't even know why that worked, but it did. Tom sent an Immobulus to Harry, but Harry used Ascendio to propel himself high into the air before doing a flip and shooting a Reducio at Tom's shoes.
Tom cursed in Parseltongue and vanished his shoes with a glare aimed at Harry.
He shot a Confundo , and Harry ducked out of its way. Unfortunately, Tom shot a Colloshoo as soon as Harry stood still for a second, and Harry couldn't move his feet anymore.
Harry shot an overpowered Scourify at Tom's robes, and he shrugged them off with a pained look.
In the meantime, Harry also vanished his shoes and gathered his magic to perform the Metelojinx.
As the storm moved above Tom, he had recovered and shot a Fulgari at Harry. Harry only just kept his wand in his hand while his arms were bound behind his back with complicated knots. Harry's thoughts went to the Muggle Shibari. He quickly banished those thoughts before he became aroused.
With his hands bound behind his back, he couldn't aim, and even with a Finite Incantatum , the ropes didn't disappear. He glared at Tom, he probably shot the curse in Parseltongue without Harry noticing, and Harry couldn't counter it without revealing he could speak to snakes too.
So he conjured a knife that he let fall from above, making sure the sharp blade cut through the ropes without harming his arms, which wasn't an easy feat because, in the meantime, he was dancing around the platform dodging Tom's hexes and curses.
''Come on, Peverell, don't make those four months become eight!'' Merrythought yelled, and Harry gaped at her for a second.
''It will be summer then!''
''Do I look like I care?'' Merrythought retorted. He had to give it to her. She did not look like she cared. She just wanted some excitement. Well, Harry could deliver.
The last rope came off, and Harry whipped his wand in front of him again, his eyes blazing with fire. He started casting Baubillious. But in some stroke of fate, Tom did exactly the same.
Their lightning bolts met in the middle of the platform, but instead of their wands connecting as they had expected like they always did when their spells met, the lightning packed enough power to blast them both backward. Harry landed hard on his back and was knocked out of breath for a moment before he started coughing.
He scrambled up when he noticed that his wand wasn't in his hand! Had he lost? But when he looked at Tom, the boy was in the same state, a bit singed, worse for wear, barefoot and without his robes, but most importantly, without his wand.
They saw that their wands had flown out of the barrier, and with the barrier still up, they couldn't wandlessly Accio them.
''Uh-'' Harry started, not knowing what to do now.
''Professor?'' Riddle's voice asked. But Merrythought was just as helpful as always.
''What are you waiting for? This isn't over. There will be no tie!'' She almost sounded panicked, and Harry could understand. She had opened up a pretty big betting pool.
Harry then looked up. It had worked once. Maybe Hogwarts would help again?
He didn't even have time to finish his thoughts before the clink of metal was heard, and two objects sped toward the platform.
Not only did Godric Gryffindor's sword fall down, but also a black sword. Harry gaped at it. The sword was encrusted with emeralds on the handle, and he suddenly understood why some people referred to his eyes as emeralds.
Tom and Harry both froze for a moment. But then Tom reached out and took the black sword with the ease of someone that had grown up with a sword in his hand.
''I claim this sword as mine as the heir of Slytherin.'' Tom declared. Harry hid his grin.
Just yesterday, they performed a version of the Fidelius charm. They made it so that it was a secret that the Chamber had opened at all last year and especially that the heir of Slytherin had been involved. With the awed expressions on everyone's faces, it seemed to have worked. Even if Harry already knew that because Tom was the Secret Keeper, so he had been a test person.
Harry had felt bad in the beginning because Myrtle was still dead, and Hagrid was still expelled, but for their future plans, this was for the best.
Harry dared to glance at Dumbledore, he was gaping at Tom, but thankfully, he wasn't looking suspicious.
Harry then gripped Gryffindor's sword.
''I claim this sword as mine as the heir of Gryffindor,'' A flash went through the hall, and warmth filled his bones. Hogwarts was happy that they had claimed their heirships.
He then locked eyes with Tom.
''Seems like Gryffindor and Slytherin approve of us.''
Tom smirked at him. ''It would seem so,''
They circled each other. The platform had been wide in length but not in width. Thankfully Merrythought transformed it into a round dueling platform in an instant.
She was crying happy tears, or so Harry assumed, because she had what seemed like the biggest smile on her face, it was ridiculous.
That woman was crazy, but Harry adored her.
Tom spun, and Harry brought up his sword. They clashed with a clang, and even if they both hadn't fought with swords ever in their lives, it looked like they had been born with the swords in their hands.
Harry ducked, slashed, and met Tom strike for strike. They seemed evenly matched, but it was tiring. They had dueled a lot tonight, and Harry felt the exhaustion seep into his bones. Tom didn't seem to tire, but Harry could tell from the slower responses.
Harry wanted to end it but could only think of one move Tom wouldn't match and shake him.
He stepped up to Tom and let Tom stab him in the side. Tom's eyes grew large in concern, and Harry made his move. He knocked the sword from Tom's hand and put his blade up Tom's throat.
''Do you yield?'' He panted in pain and fatigue.
Tom's eyes blazed at him, Harry couldn't determine what emotions were stirring inside of Tom, but he was glad when Tom stepped back and nodded. ''I yield, now get help, you obnoxious Gryffindor.''
Harry grinned at him, but with the pain lacing his side, it probably was more of a grimace. ''I need to honor my heritage, don't I?'' He replied cheekily.
They were pulled out of their bubble when cheers and clapping burst from the stands. The Healer rushed onto the platform and was clearly not amused.
But Harry couldn't care less. He had won! He glanced at Dumbledore but was shocked to see that the man wasn't there anymore.
Merrythought rushed after the Healer and grabbed first Tom's face in her hands, and kissed both his cheeks, much to Harry's amazement and amusement, before doing the same to him.
''No, detentions for you two, a hundred points for Gryffindor, and a hundred points to Slytherin! And here, Peverell, buy something nice for yourself,'' She exclaimed gleefully while handing over the prize money.
''This was the best dueling final I've ever seen, and I've been international. Ever thought to go professional with this?'' She asked them.
Harry wanted to answer that no. He hadn't thought about that at all, he was only thinking of defeating Grindelwald with these skills, but first, he needed to bring Dumbledore down. He was only a little bit dismayed he couldn't defeat Dumbledore in a duel in the same way as Grindelwald, but he would make due.
But the Healer interrupted before he could speak.
''Constance! Get your butt away from here, or I will hex you into next week! I need to heal these students!'' She snapped.
Professor Merrythought became as white as a sheet, not something Harry ever expected to see.
''I'm sorry dear, but you know how I get with these kinds of things,'' Merrythought pleaded with the Healer.
Harry gaped when Madame's face softened. ''I know, darling, but healing goes first in this situation. Am I clear?''
''Of course, dear!'' Merrythought then hurried off the platform, leaving a flabbergasted Tom and Harry.
When the Healer focused on them again, she raised her eyebrow.
''What, did you think that because we're old, we aren't in a relationship anymore? Constance and I have been married for seventy years.'' She said with a raised eyebrow.
Tom recovered faster than Harry after that declaration.
''I'm sorry, Madame, it just hadn't occurred to me that you two were involved.''
The Matron looked at him and scoffed. ''Of course not. It's not like we flaunt it all over Hogwarts, but back to the important things. Get your butts onto these stretchers, or so help me, Merlin. I will put you two to sleep and will make it hurt.''
Harry had never climbed on a stretcher that fast.
Merrythought was crazy, but the Matron was scary.
They were perfect for each other.
Harry needed to stay in the hospital wing for two days and Tom for one. They talked softly when no one was around. He was thankful that Tom wasn't feeling resentful of losing in front of that many people, even if he did call Harry an idiot about seventy times.
Their swords had stayed with them. Tom thought it was because they had claimed them as the heirs, and Harry agreed. Harry had Mipsy come to put them both in Peverell mansion for safekeeping. He didn't want Dumbledore to get his paws on them.
Thankfully, he was released on match day. Slytherin versus Gryffindor, and most importantly, Quidditch against Tom!
He had been cleared by a very stern-looking Madame, but she did clear him for Quidditch!
Now Harry was striding from the changing rooms with his team to the field.
There was a lot of posturing from the Slytherins, of course, and the Gryffindor team wasn't one to stand down, but Harry had only eyes for Tom.
Who was smirking at Harry as if he knew how much it unnerved him.
It was a dirty match from the first second, but he hadn't expected anything less. He was circling the pitch with Tom on his heels, which quickly became very annoying.
''Go look for the Snitch somewhere else, Riddle,'' Harry snarled when Tom just kept following him wherever he went.
''Why would I? I thought I should learn from the best. That's what you told me, at least.'' He told Harry with a smirk.
''Did that hurt? Admitting that I'm better at something than you?'' Harry mused before snickering when Tom scowled at him.
''I admit you're better than me in a lot of things. You just don't take me seriously when I say it.''
Harry whipped around. ''You never say that I'm better at something!''
Tom rolled his eyes. ''You're better at Quidditch, and I only took this position to annoy you, which is clearly working, by the way. You're also better at dueling, which you showed last Thursday quite thoroughly. Which is why you're teaching me to become better-'' He then leered at Harry. ''-and I think you would be wonderful at sucking cock, but I still need to convince you of performing that act,''
Harry spluttered with a beet-red face, and Tom dived down. Harry frowned before he saw that Tom had spotted the Snitch!
Harry dived after him and cursed in his head. It had clearly been a distraction tactic, and it had worked wonderfully because Tom was almost catching the Snitch because of it!
He hated Slytherins.
Harry ground his teeth and plastered himself against his broom, ready for any movement the Snitch could suddenly make. He was gaining on Tom, but then the Snitch dived to the left. Thankfully this was an advantage for Harry, who pulled harshly on his broom seconds before Tom had done so.
The Snitch shot to the right this time and dived even further to the ground. Tom was clearly hesitating with diving so fast to the ground and was holding back, not wanting to splatter himself all over the ground at high speed.
Harry hadn't had those inhibitions. He dived and pulled on his broom to shoot over the grass, following the Snitch closely. He had pulled so hard on his broom that he was standing on it instead of sitting.
Harry was reminded of his very first Quidditch game and started surfing on his broom. He was grinning from ear to ear. This- this was why he loved flying. This freedom was something that just couldn't compare to anything else.
He ducked when a Bludger almost took his head off, but he was so close to the Snitch that he wouldn't give up.
He placed a sticking charm on his shoes when the Snitch surged upwards again. He was still standing on his broom, but he knew he would catch the Snitch. He reached out and grabbed the golden ball while the wings fluttered uselessly in his fingers. He whooped in glee and spun while still standing on his broom.
He laughed loudly and freely while his teammates cheered him on. Charlus and Bill flew to him and declared him mad for standing on his broom like that but gleefully informed him that they had won with a hundred points difference.
Harry was swept up in the festivities and didn't even think about Tom until he had landed again, and Tom walked up to him.
Tom stopped in front of him and stuck out his hand. ''Good game, Peverell,''
Harry grinned. He couldn't stop grinning and took his hand. ''Thanks, you too, Riddle. You weren't that bad,'' He told Tom, and Tom looked sulkily for a moment before smirking again.
''Well, I still can try to convince you to suck next time,'' He then turned around and walked away, leaving a spluttering Harry behind.
''What the fuck.'' Harry hissed, but he shook himself and decided to put that innuendo out of his head as fast as possible.
Other POV;
Evan Mulciber hated Hadrian Peverell. He hated him from the first moment he laid eyes on him and caused trouble for him with his father. He started hating him even more when he seemed to be good in just about every class.
He was even beating Tom! Which shouldn't be possible because Tom is his Lord, and his Lord is the most amazing wizard he has ever met.
But here was that little upstart just flouncing around how good he was in dueling, how amazing he was in Quidditch, and just beating his Lord as if it was nothing!
And when Evan tried to ask for revenge, he was shot down by his Lord.
It was clear that his Lord didn't know what he needed. Well, Evan did know. He knew that his Lord needed to be reassured that he still had his former standing within the Knights. His Lord should know that his Knights will not take such insult standing down!
He was their pride! He was their everything!
Even if his Lord was just sixteen, almost seventeen years old, it didn't matter. Tom Marvolo Riddle was meant for greater things. And Evan would be at his side through it all.
And that meant that he would teach Peverell the lesson he deserved.
Evan knew that Abraxas also wanted to deal with Peverell after humiliating him in the dueling competition, so he would probably gleefully help Evan with his plans.
And Adam Rosier was always in for some fun. He was easily convinced, wanting to show Peverell that he was more with Dark Magic than Peverell could ever be. From what Evan had understood, was that Peverell had humiliated him too, but during classes.
According to Adam, it was because he couldn't use his signature curse during class. Evan let him believe that.
They made a plan and just had to wait until Peverell returned from the library alone like he always did on Tuesday evening because he met with Alphard Black, that traitor, there for homework.
There weren't even in the same classes! It was clear that Black just wanted another fuck toy, and Peverell was just being a whore.
But tonight, they would strike. Evan could hardly wait.
Tom's POV;
Tom was sitting in the Slytherin common room. He had done his homework and was just casually reading a book written in Parselscript. He was thankful that Hadrian wasn't there. He didn't think the boy would ever let him live it down if he knew Tom was reading homoerotica in Parselscript.
He was missing a few of his Knights, but that wasn't anything unusual. As long as they didn't get caught, he didn't care what they did.
So when the wall that contained the entrance shook with a rumble, he was up on his feet in an instant. There couldn't be bombings in Hogwarts, could there?
But no, it wasn't a bomb, and Tom marginally calmed down. He had his wand in his hand and ordered the Knights that were in the common room with him to send everyone back to their dorms. Most of the Slytherins looked scared and hurried to comply.
The wall rumbled again before it slid open. Revealing a furious Hadrian Peverell in all his glory. Tom was glad only his Knights were in the common room now.
"Keep your snakes on a leash, Riddle, or I will," Hadrian growled out in an almost inhuman voice. Tom's eyes widen. Hadrian almost sounded like Death. He swallowed harshly.
He stepped closer to Hadrian, only to see that three of his Knights were floating behind Hadrian, bound, unconscious, and clearly hurt.
''What happened?'' Tom questions, looking at the floating Slytherins with a frown.
He's rattled from Hadrian storming into Slytherin territory like this. He seems like an avenging angel.
''These three psychopaths decided they wanted to teach me a lesson, almost killing me in the process!'' Hadrian is so mad it almost came out as Parseltongue, something he keeps under wraps, whatever it takes.
Tom looks at Hadrian with a frown before noticing that Hadrian's neck has a raw-looking band on it, and it's bleeding sluggishly.
Tom sees red. He reaches out and sees Hadrian flinch from his fingers but doesn't register it quite correctly because he still touches the wound.
His voice is chilling when he finally can talk.
"Who did this to you?"
A/N:
I should be sleeping, like seriously, it's in the middle of the night, but I just couldn't stop!
I hope you liked the chapter! I loved writing it!
Please let me know!
In the next chapter, I'll write what happened between Harry and the Slytherins that ambushed him!
xx MBlack93
Oh, and I used spells I found in the Unofficial Ultimate Harry Potter Spellbook! I liked adding them to the duels, I am quite shit at writing fighting scenes, but I hope that you still liked it!
Here is a list of the spells I used!
Avifors - Transform the target into a bird, a flock of birds.
Crinus Muto - Change color and style of caster's hair.
Herbifors - To turn a target's hair into flowers
Orbis - To suck a target into the ground
Langlock - To make a target's tongue stick to the roof of their mouth
Furnunculus - To make a person break out in boils or pimples
Ebublio - To trap in a large bubble
Protego - To make a magic shield that blocks both physical objects and spells
Densaugeo - To elongate a target's teeth
Brachiabindo - To bind one's opponent with ropes
Accio - You'll all know this one, but it's to call an object to yourself
Finite/ Finite Incantatum - Terminates another spell's effects
Fumos - To create a defensive screen of smoke
Obscuro - To conjure a blindfold, obscuring a target's vision.
Ascendio - To probel the caster upwards
Baubillious - To shoot lightning
Confundo - To produce confusion in the target
Expecto Patronum - To conjure a Patronus
Fulgari - To bind an opponent's arms in luminous cords
Glacius - To freeze the air in front of the wand
Immobulus - To render a target immobile
Metelojinx - To create a localized storm
Reducio - To make a target smaller
Scourgify - To clean an object
Stupefy - To make a target unconscious
Colloshoo - To make a target's shoes stick to the ground