Heeey! Long time no see! ;)

I am so sorry it took so long, had tons of stuff going on in rl, got sick...etc. But, this chapter is now done and I am working on the next and LAST chapter now, which I am hoping to update soon as well.

Thank you so sooo much for being so patient and awesome, you guys are really some great readers!

I would like to especially thank my reviewers rozmeen and Gypsyrose98 for being loyal and for enjoying my story ;)

A knock on the door made him turn his head, and he frowned, annoyed at being interrupted.

"Come in!", he called out, and the door to his office opened seconds later, and his spy hesitantly entered the room, probably sensing that he was not welcome right at this moment.

"Any new information?", Dumbledore asked, not wanting to waste his precious time with small talk, "anything I need to know?"

His spy swallowed, looking uncomfortable, "I…uhm…have reason to believe that…Gryffindor is doubting the…existence of another horcrux in Scotland", he began, "he seems to worry more about his family at the mome …"

"His family?", Dumbledore repeated, his eyes turning cold, "the whole reason we sent Gryffindor on this senseless hunt is so he cannot spend time with his family, and now you are telling me he does not want to go because his family is more important?"

"There…seems to have been some new development, involving…uhm…Voldemort", the spy went on, "apparently, he left the foster family he was in since they mistreated…"

"Get to the point", Dumbledore's voice was sharp, "I do not care about Voldemort's private life in some foster home, that boy is not a danger to me. Gryffindor is."

"Gryffindor seems to want to…adopt Voldemort."

Dumbledore let out a harsh laugh, "again, why should I care? Let him adopt a whole litter of foster boys, as long as he stays out of my business!"

"He is thinking of sending Voldemort back to school here", the spy went on, seemingly ignoring Dumbledore's remark, and that finally got the Headmaster's attention.

"Sending Voldemort here? To Hogwarts? I must say, the brazenness of that Founder is unbelievable!", Dumbledore had gotten up, and for a moment it looked like he wanted to smash the tea cup he was still holding in one hand against the wall, but then he simply put it down on the table in front of him, his face grim.

"He is using Voldemort as a spy…it is nonsense that he wants to adopt that criminal little scumbag", he finally spat out, his tone hateful enough to even make his spy wince, "but that is a game that can be played by two players…I want his time here to be nothing but miserable as soon as he steps his foot into the Great Hall. I want him to be scared, hurt, tired, hungry, exhausted…I want him to suffer enough that he will either run away or end his pathetic existence."

"Yes, Sir", the spy's voice was quiet.

"About the horcrux", Dumbledore went on, "you need to make it more believable. He needs more hints, he needs more evidence, I need him out of my way here, especially now that I have to deal with Voldemort soon."

"How do I…"

"That is your problem to solve, not mine", Dumbledore interrupted him, "it worked perfectly in the beginning, Gryffindor obsessing over non-existent horcruxes, neglecting his family, and it will have to work again. The risk of them both getting back together cannot be taken."

The spy simply nodded, not stating the obvious: Dumbledore was no match for the magical abilities of a Founder, let alone two. As long as Gryffindor was preoccupied on a horcrux hunt and Slytherin was too busy grieving his failed marriage, they would not have any time or energy left to turn on him.

"Anything else?", Dumbledore now asked, and his spy swallowed again, "would another…distraction help, maybe?"

"Gryffindor is not that desperate to fuck again yet", Dumbledore replied bluntly, causing his spy to blush with mortification at the implication of the words, "give it a few weeks, and we can maybe try that concept again, it worked wonders the first time", his lips turned into a sardonic smile, "he really believed the whole nerdy art collector scam, so he might believe another scam as well…we have to wait and see."

The spy nodded again.

"I have no use for Gryffindor to linger around here any longer. I am almost ready to create my first real horcrux…and I do not need any distractions for that. Not from anyone."

His spy winced.

"I found…the perfect one. The one that will turn this horcrux into a powerful one", Dumbledore was ranting now, oblivious to the fact that his spy had gotten pale, "the perfect victim…strong, full of resentment, easy to lose his temper…he will be the one I will use."

"A…a man?"

"A boy", Dumbledore corrected, his eyes sparkling with excitement, "nothing but a boy…he will be the one who will suffer for me, and die for me."

"What…is his name?"

Dumbledore smiled. He was smart enough to know when it was time to lie, and smart enough to know when it was necessary to lie.

So, he lied.

"A boy from Hogsmeade named Kasim…he won't be missed", he replied curtly, waving his hand to show that the conversation was over for him now, "do not focus on that. Focus on getting Gryffindor away from here, and…to get Voldemort the welcome he deserves."

"Yes…Sir."

They exchanged some quick goodbyes, and once his spy had finally left his office, Dumbledore sat back down in his chair, leaning back.

No one needed to know who he had really chosen to become his first horcrux…he obviously would not chose some random stray kid from the street, no…he had chosen someone else. Someone who used to be an adult and was now a boy, which he assumed would double the strength of the horcrux, and it was someone he had always despised.

Sirius Black.

Relius?

Yes, Tommy?

I'm scared.

Take a deep breath, okay? It is going to be alright. Sirius will be there, helping you.

Okay…

Tom bit his lips, not wanting to tell Aurelius that the fact that Sirius would be there did nothing to make him feel better. He had met the boy the other day, along with Godric and Aurelius, and even though Sirius had been quite polite and friendly, Tom had seen through his façade, the same one Felicity used to show him at first. He could tell that Sirius hated him, and wanted him far, far gone.

But Gryffindor had not given him a choice. The dogs were well taken care of with Slytherin, and apparently there was some other horcrux Gryffindor needed to find, a horcrux he could not help with, even though he had offered.

So, there was no other choice for him to attend Hogwarts earlier than planned, since Aurelius also had to go back to college.

He could not say he was thrilled to go back to the place that held mostly bad, very bad memories for him. No one knew he was Voldemort, of course not, but going back as Thomas Lemarc would be bad enough, since he would be pretend to be Sirius' distantly related cousin.

I'm going to come see you boys for the next Hogsmeade weekend in a bit.

That…would be nice.

I agree.

Tom could hear the amusement in Aurelius' voice, and he fervently wished his brother to be there right now as he slowly walked into the Great Hall.

He did not want to be here. He did not ever want to attend Hogwarts again.

Everyone stared at him as McGonagall introduced him as a new student and Sirius' cousin, and before the Sorting Hat had even been put on his head, he already knew where he would end up this time.

"GRYFFINDOR!"

Good job, Tommybear.

Aurelius sounded proud, like he had done something to influence this decision, even though they both knew it was all to keep his fake persona intact.

I…I don't want to do this.

I know…it's never easy to be the new kid, but you have Sirius there to help you. Everyone believes you are cousins, so they won't think anything of it if you spend a lot of time together.

I…I am not sure if Sirius even wants to do that.

You need to give him a chance, Tommy. This is not easy for him, either.

Why can't I just stay at the college with you?

Because you are not old enough for that.

But…I could just stay in your room, quietly, and…

Tommy…

He slightly winced at the warning in Aurelius' tone, knowing he was getting close to crossing the line.

I'm sorry, Relius.

He could hear his older brother sigh.

Give it a chance, Tommy. Please.

I…I will.

Thank you. You can always talk to me if you need help, alright? I am here for you.

I…I know.

I love you, Tommy.

I love you, too.

Their mental connection closed, and Tom sat down with the other third graders from Gryffindor who had already started to eat.

Sirius looked over to him, and their eyes met- and then Sirius smiled, giving him a quick little wave with his hand, and Tom felt his face heat, the kind gesture unexpected.

Maybe this isn't going to be so bad. Maybe I was wrong about Sirius.

Some other third graders started to ask him some curious questions, mostly about why he was joining their class in the middle of the school year, and Tom tried to answer every question as good as he could, remembering the storyline that Gryffindor and Aurelius had taught him beforehand.

It seemed to have worked, since none of the other students seemed suspicious, and Tom exhaled quietly, relaxing a bit more.

Now it was time for dessert, and his eyes lit up when he saw the pies, pastries, and other baked goods lined up on the table.

This definitely beats the canned food I had at the office- and probably even beats Patty's meals.

He chose a lemon meringue pie, and his mouth began to water at the sight and smell of it.

This is gonna be good.

It was good- but not for him, but for someone else watching with glee when Tom started screaming in agony as soon as the pie had touched his tongue. Within seconds, his tongue felt like it had been set on fire, and he desperately grabbed his water, trying to stop the pain, but in his haste, he knocked the glass over, spilling water everywhere.

His fellow classmates had gotten up, shocked and confused, and, alarmed by the uproar at the third graders table, McGonagall and some other teachers came storming their way.

Tom could only gasp, clutching his hand to his neck, and the last thing he remembered before he lost consciousness was Sirius' face- and the barely hidden smirk on it.

Guilt.

The sheer amount of guilt lasting on him was the reason he was here now, at night, in Hogsmeade.

Since Dumbledore had informed him about his plan to create a horcrux by murdering some boy from the village, he had barely slept. Or eaten. Or been able to follow a conversation.

He had not expected Dumbledore to go this far, even though he should have expected it. His loyalty to the headmaster had become cracks, and this had been the last straw.

I cannot do this anymore. I cannot.

He knew what he did was a suicide mission, he knew that when or if Dumbledore found out, he would kill him. Most likely torture him beforehand.

And still, he did not stop walking across Hogsmeade, driven by his guilt.

I have to find him. I have to find Kasim.

Hogsmeade was small, and he had not even known there were any kids living here, but clearly, Dumbledore had managed to find one.

He kept walking, trying his best to appear casual, when he wanted nothing more than to hide and forget he had ever agreed to become Dumbledore's spy. It had been the worst decision of his life- he just wished he could reverse it all.

It had gotten darker, and going from store to store, there was no one who fit the description. Not a single boy.

And then, as he walked by the Three Broomsticks Inn, he saw him.

A boy, maybe around ten, helping to clean a table. He was not a Hogwarts student, but might be one in the future.

Maybe related to the owners?

He got excited, and since he was cold and tired and over it, he opened the door and walked into the Inn.

Madam Rosmerta sent him a friendly smile, "good evening, Sir. How are you doing tonight?"

"I…am fine", he lied, walking closer, his eyes never leaving the boy who was now stacking some chairs at the side of the room, "uhm…is that…your son?"

"My great nephew", Madam Rosmerta replied, frowning, "why? Did he get in any trouble?"

"What's his name?", he asked, completely ignoring her question in his desire to find the boy.

"Kasim."

He exhaled, not knowing that Dumbledore had casually picked the name after overhearing a conversation at the Inn not long ago where Madam Rosmerta had mentioned that the boy would help her out for a few weeks during his school holidays.

"I…I have to talk to him", he forced himself to smile, "don't worry, he is not in any trouble."

"Then why do you have to talk to him?"

He started to sweat, unprepared for any questions. He actually had no idea how to proceed from here, all he knew is that he had to protect the boy, and that Hogwarts would be safer for him than staying at the Inn. There were enough rooms and spots to hide at the school where Dumbledore would not find the boy.

"I…I would like to tutor him", he had said it before he could think about it, and now both Kasim and Madam Rosmerta were staring at him.

"I…I see great potential in him", he kept going, "and…uhm…I could…maybe help him to start at Hogwarts…earlier."

Silence.

He was sweating like crazy now, and in his despair, he reached for the one thing that makes most people change their mind.

"I would pay his tuition. I can help him."

Money.

Immediately, Madam Rosmerta's face became friendlier, "Kasim is a bright boy", she agreed, and he quietly exhaled in relief, "he is not supposed to start until next September but…if he could start earlier…his parents work a lot, so it would be easier on them. I would not generally trust anyone with my nephew, but since you are a professor at the school, that is quite a different matter."

Remus Lupin smiled, grateful that his position had helped his scheme to fall into place.

"Let's sit down and talk", he suggested, and soon, he found himself with the prospect of taking this boy who he had never met before back to Hogwarts with him- where he would have to find a place to hide him from Dumbledore.

I am not letting him kill you, Kasim. I am not.

"Lemarc."

He slowly got up when he heard his name being called, already dreading the way to the front of the class.

Not this time, not this time, not…

He screamed out when he suddenly stumbled and went crashing down to the floor, his classmates barely reacting, most of them just rolling their eyes at his clumsiness.

They had nicknamed him Tripping Thomas simply because he did not seem to be able to go anywhere without falling, stumbling, or tripping over something, along with his general klutzy behavior.

Burning his tongue on the hot pie had been the start of a series of miserable experiences, he had spilled ink, broken furniture, knocked over class materials, and torn out more book pages he could count.

The strange thing was, he seemed unable to control or stop any of that behavior, and while in the beginning, his classmates had been compassionate, it quickly had turned into annoyance and now they were mostly indifferent towards him.

No one wanted to sit with him during meals, no one wanted to team up with him for experiments, no one wanted to be in a dormitory with him, they all just stayed far away from him- not wanting to get hurt or to get a bad grade by associating with him.

He had told Aurelius, who had not been of much help, basically telling him that his stress and anxiety about fitting in were causing his issues- that it was all in his head.

After another awful day of classes full of strange mistakes that only ever seemed to happen to him, he was tired. He hated this, being here, being ignored and mocked, being lonely…

He found his way outside, breathing in fresh, cold air.

I want to go home.

He wasn't even sure where exactly home was- a mix between Gryffindor's penthouse and Aurelius' college dorm, but he did know that this, what he had here, really sucked. Not even being basically homeless had been this awful.

He had taken his lunch outside with him, tired of the side looks and remarks from his classmates when he spilled pumpkin juice or dropped his cutlery for the thousands time, so he now preferred to eat by himself.

He had barely eaten half his sandwich when he suddenly saw a boy running towards him, a boy he had never seen before.

Who is this? Why does he look so freaked out?

The boy kept running his way, finally stopping right in front of him, his face covered in sweat, "you…have…to help me!", he choked out between gasps of air, "he…wants…to…kill me!"

What. the. hell?

"Who…wants to kill you? What are you taking about? Who are you?"

"I'm…Kasim!", the boy blurted out, "and…Mr. Lupin…has been…hiding me. He said…he would tutor me…but…today I overheard…him talking to…his house elf…cause the elf…saw me by accident…and he…said, no one can know…I am here cause he wants to kill me!"

"Who is he?"

"I don't know!", the strange boy named Kasim raised his hands in frustration and distress, "but…I can't stay with Mr. Lupin. The elf might…talk!"

"That is a possibility", Tom agreed, frowning, "where did you live before?"

Kasim went on to tell him about his family, and how he had helped Madam Rosmerta at the Inn, and Tom listened quietly, thinking. The story made no sense to him, but it was clear that the boy was freaked out and needed help- and he longed for a companion, a friend…someone to talk to.

"I could…hide you", he said before he could think otherwise, "I could hide you in the dorms."

"But…aren't there other boys?"

Tom swallowed, looking down, "I…I sometimes have nightmares, so I have my own bedroom", he lied, not wanting to admit that no one wanted to sleep nearby Tripping Thomas, and Kasim nodded in understanding, "that…could work. I just have to get away from Mr. Lupin for a bit til I figured out who is after me. It's all kinda weird."

Tom had to agree, even though he also thought it was quite exciting- a real mystery to solve. He finished his lunch, sharing the rest of his meal with Kasim, and then they quietly went back into the school, and even though he stumbled over his shoes twice on the way, they made it to his bedroom without being seen.

"This is perfect!", Kasim looked around, a happy smile on his face, "no one will look for me here, and we can talk all night and play games!"

Tom felt himself turning red with anticipation of having someone to talk to at night, someone to joke around with…

This is going to be fun.

And it was. He still got called Tripping Thomas, he still got mostly ignored and excluded, and Sirius still barely acknowledged his existence except to smirk at him, but it did not matter- he had Kasim now.

Since no one bothered to eat with him, it was easy for him to sneak food up to Kasim- who spend his days reading, napping, and coming up with crazy plans to find his killer while Tom was in class. They spend hours at night with any conspiracy theory they could think of, something they both had come to enjoy tremendously.

It was about a week after Tom had started hiding Kasim, never really thinking about how long he would be able to keep this scheme up, and he had just sneaked some more fruit from the table for Kasim when all of a sudden, Sirius stepped in his way.

"Who's all that food for?"

Tom blinked, taken aback by Sirius' forceful tone, and then he looked down on the grapes and two apples in his hand, "all that? That's just a snack for later", he meant to leave, annoyed by Sirius' inquiries, but the younger boy did not let him.

"You also took two extra sandwiches yesterday, even though I saw you eat two sandwiches outside right before."

Tom flushed, humiliated by the idea that Sirius had seen him eat alone- and yet never asked to join him.

And he's supposed to be my cousin- what a joke.

"I have to go."

"You mean, you have to trip."

Tom bit his lips so hard they almost started to bleed, hating Sirius more than ever, "leave me the hell alone, Black", he said through clenched teeth, "how much I eat is none of your damn business. Nothing I do is any of your business."

He was somewhat surprised to see the younger boy flinch at that, but then Sirius looked him straight in the eye, his face angry, "you can starve to death for all I care- but the others have noticed, too. That you always sneak food now, I mean. Why do you want to be everyone's idiot all the time?"

"Shouldn't you be glad it's not you anymore?", Tom shot back, intending to be cruel, "or do you want your title back so bad?"

His shot hit the target since Sirius shrank back like he had been slapped, and Tom could see that his face had gotten white.

"You really are nothing but a bastard", Sirius finally replied, barely holding it together, "I am going to tell Relius that…"

"That you are a little snitch?"

Sirius balled his hands into fists, clearly upset now, "I want to know who all the food is for! Are you keeping a pet in the dorms? Or are you giving it to someone?"

"It's all for me", Tom lied, enjoying Sirius' agitation quite a bit now, and the younger boy bit back a curse, "I am not going to get in trouble with Relius or anyone cause you can't follow the rules! If you refuse to tell me, I'll find out another way! See you in the dorms!", and then he took off, laughing mockingly when Tom stumbled as soon as he was trying to go after him.

Damnit!

Of course Sirius was way faster than him, of course he would get to the dorms before him, and see Kasim there…and then…

Tom didn't want to finish his thought, he just ran as fast as he could but alas, alas…Sirius was already inside his bedroom when he reached the dorms.

No one else was around, it was right after lunch time, so most of the students were at their study time already or in the library.

His worst fear became true when he saw Kasim and Sirius together in the room, and Kasim looked like he was…crying?

"What did you…"

"I did nothing", Sirius interrupted him, his face pale and confused, "I just…told him my name, and then he suddenly started to cry and said something about that…it's me. That I am supposed to be the one who is going to get killed. I…I don't understand. Who wants to kill me?"

Kasim looked up, his face red from crying, "I…went back to find out more from Mr. Lupin. I was eavesdropping. And…the headmaster was there. They…had an argument. And…he said that he never wanted to kill me for the horcrux, he wants…you. He said Sirius. The one who goes by Scipius now. And that's you, right?"

Sirius and Tom could only stare at the other boy, who now loudly sniffed, "you…need to do something, fast", he sounded urgent, "Dumbledore was…mad. He said he doesn't want to waste any more time."

"He…he is going to kill me? You are not making this up?", Sirius was trembling now, even though he was trying not to show it, and then he looked over to Tom, fear clearly in his eyes, "what…am I supposed to do now, Tom?"

What am I supposed to do now, Tom?

Supposed to do now, Tom?

To do now, Tom?

And in that moment, something between them changed.

yep...stay tuned for the grand finale in the next chapter, where the last secrets will be resolved! :)

thank you all again for being so patient and loyal and awesome!

I would looooove some feedback!

xoxo,

Antonie :)