Chapter 4

Khal/Harry POV

Khal felt a slight stirring from the body he was lying against, and he quickly opened his eyes to make sure the Dark Lord was still asleep, but instead, he found his gaze caught as he noticed that the man seemed to be staring at him while deep in thought.

On impulse, he changed back to himself and found himself sitting on the foot of the bed.

For a moment, the two of them stared at each other before the Dark Lord let out a sigh, "I guess it is time for us to have that talk…"

Harry grimaced, "Honestly, I would rather forget everything that happened and start from the beginning, but I realise that isn't quite possible for us."

The Dark Lord nodded, and Harry suddenly noted that he didn't know how to refer to the man, "What should I call you? I know you don't like Tom…but, except for Voldemort, I don't know what else to call you, and I would rather not call you that for obvious reasons."

His words had the Dark Lord thinking for a moment, "You could call me by my second name, Marvolo, I'm not too fond of it after discovering its origins, but very few people would be able to link it to the one known as Voldemort."

Harry thought about it for a moment before he nodded, "I can do that…Marvolo."

He noticed how the Dark Lord twitched slightly as he said his name and decided to try and use it as sparingly as possible since it appeared as if the man really didn't like his second name either.

He quickly decided to change the subject, "I don't know where to start…so let's start at the beginning, I guess. From what I know, you've always been adamant about proving that there is nothing magic cannot do, so why was it so easy for you to start believing in a prophecy? Especially one that Dumbledore was present at."

Marvolo grimaced, "I would blame the Horcruxes for my increased paranoia, but that would simply be an excuse. At that point, we had been gaining a lot of ground, and even though we had a purpose, everyone was beginning to grow tired of the ongoing war, and I was growing worried about the number of magical beings who were dying because of it. The mention of the prophecy caught me at a time when everything had become a bit too much, and I reacted without thinking everything through."

Harry was quiet for a moment as he processed this, and if he were honest with himself, it made a lot more sense than the Dark Lord simply becoming crazy and massacring everyone.

The thought barely formed before he felt a familiar sting in his side, and he yelped even though he could feel that the power behind it had been greatly reduced.

He glared at Marvolo, only to find humour in his gaze, and Harry's eyes widened as he remembered that the man could probably hear everything he thought.

Harry scowled and gave in to the urge to cross his arms, "That isn't fair, you know…I should be able to think things without you being privy to every thought."

Marvolo nodded at this, though there still seemed to be humour in his gaze as he spoke, "I agree. Which is why I will be teaching you Occlumency and Legilimency. Occlumency will help you to protect your thoughts, while Legilimency will help you scan the surface thoughts of those around you to ensure that you don't get into any more troublesome situations…especially when you inevitably confront those you know."

Harry was happy to learn that there was a way to keep his thoughts private, but Marvolo's words reminded him that he wouldn't be able to simply hide away at the Manor forever.

He nodded, "Thank you. So…that explains the trigger behind what happened, but not how I became your Horcrux."

Marvolo sighed, "Maybe not, but it does fall under the same cause…having heard only part of the prophecy, I started wondering whether I had done enough to be able to survive it through the war, and my intention was to make another Horcrux that night…but as you know, something happened, and that led to me living as a shade…"

Harry grimaced. Sure, he knew what came after, and he wasn't very keen on talking about his life at the Dursleys, so he decided to skip ahead, "In my first year, you told me you could give me back my parents…did you mean that literally, or were you talking about me joining them once."

Marvolo looked slightly sheepish at that…and then resigned, "There is a way, but they wouldn't be truly alive, and I doubt they would have been happy beyond getting to see you again…"

Harry thought about it for a moment, "But there was a way…even if it would have been for a little while, so you weren't lying to me."

Marvolo nodded, "You know I stayed away for a while after that during your second and third years…but I was informed about what happened during each of them, and it was because you destroyed the diary that I was able to come back sane. Everything that happened after that, well, you mostly know."

It took a moment for him to notice, but looking at Marvolo, Harry finally realised that the man seemed to be relaxed as he sat against the headboard, and he felt like facepalming as he finally took in the current situation, "I can't believe I'm sitting on the Dark Lord's bed chatting about the times you tried to kill me."

Marvolo smiled slightly, "You do seem to be drawn to trouble…so it shouldn't be much of a surprise…I'm just sorry that I seem to be the cause of most of it."

There was silence for a moment; then Harry found himself leaning back slightly as he looked up at the ceiling, "It's ok. it may not have been the best start…but I find that I am happy here…for as long as I am allowed to stay at least."

Harry yelped when he was suddenly yanked forward, and he found himself against Marvolo's chest, the man's heart beating rapidly for some reason, but before he had a chance to ask why, he suddenly spoke, "I think it would be best for you to remove that last line of thought from your mind completely. If I had my way…you wouldn't be leaving my sight at all, but I realise that would be impossible, so I want you to know that you would always be welcome here and at Riddle Manor once I get the place fixed up."

Harry froze for a moment before allowing his body to relax against Marvolo. Strangely enough, it didn't feel bad at all…in fact, something about it felt just right.

He closed his eyes, tension leaving his body completely as Marvolo started rubbing his back, and it wasn't long before he fell asleep again, this time in Marvolo's arms.

It would have been an amazing nap if it weren't for the fact that his sleep was disturbed when he heard Marvolo let out an actual rumbling growl. Harry opened his eyes to find both Lucius and Severus standing in the doorway and looking a bit ruffled.

They seemed to have been looking for him.

It took him a few moments to realise that they were giving him strange looks…or, more accurately, they were staring at where he was lying against Marvolo's side.

A sense of Deja Vu seemed to fall over him, and he sighed.