Harry may still need to be cuddled up to Tom in order to sleep, but Tom still needed Harry close by in their waking hours.
Thankfully Harry hadn’t packed all that much for his visit and Tom was able to find everything of his. After that Tom began gathering up his own belongings.
Other than his books Tom didn’t have much. The things that he, and the Malfoy’s, had bought the day before were still in his shrunken chest which was still in his bottomless bag he’d gotten from Gothrack.
Muggle books probably wouldn’t be very welcome at Hogwarts, but they were Tom’s and he wasn’t about to give them up. Although Tom did make sure to leave the books that belonged to the orphanage.
Tom hesitated as he packed away his clothes. Most of them were second hand and, though they weren’t ratty, it was obvious they had been worn quite a bit. If he really was moving in with the Malfoy’s he would need nicer clothes besides the robes he had bought in Diagon Alley.
Now that the Malfoy’s knew about his situation though perhaps they would allow him to go into London and buy some new clothes.
He groaned at that idea, not liking the idea of going on another shopping trip after the escapades that happened yesterday.
Finding and packing everything took no time at all and Tom soon found himself downstairs. Not many other children were awake yet, but the pre-teen could smell eggs being cooked by Martha. When Tom looked around the dinning room though he couldn’t find Harry anywhere.
A moment of panic settled in Tom’s gut before he heard Harry’s voice coming from the kitchen. Instantly Tom calmed down and he was able to breath easier.
‘That’s it Harry. Are you sure you can mix the batter by yourself?’
Tom found Harry sitting on a stool at the kitchen counter, a large bowl of pancake batter in front of him and a big spoon in his two hands.
‘I can do it Miss Martha!’ The small boy said with determination as he struggled to move the spoon around in the batter. It wasn’t that the batter was thick, it was just a lot larger than Harry was used too.
Thinking that Harry would be safe with Martha, Tom left the kitchen to go around the orphanage to make sure he wasn’t missing anything that he needed to take with him.
After checking the entire first floor Tom went outside to check the shed and any other places that he and Harry often went to in order to hide from the other kids.
He was halfway to the shed when a hand came out from behind a bush and suddenly shoved Tom to the ground.
‘Why were you so late getting back yesterday Riddle?’
It was the idiot Billy and a few of his fellow bullies. Over the years the boy and his ‘friends’ had backed off from harassing Tom, but there were times when they’d fall back to their old ways.
‘And who were those fancy people that were with you? Did you steal from them or do one of your freaky things to them?’ Billy sneered down at Tom who had yet to stand up.
Normally in a situation like this Tom would use his powers to deflect Billy and the others; make them forget they had even noticed Tom. Seeing as how this would probably be the last time he had to deal with the horrible children Tom decided to go a different route.
‘Freaky things?’ Tom hissed out. He wasn’t even speaking English and Ophion peaked out from around Tom’s neck to see what was going on. Seeing the boys standing over Tom made the little black snack hiss in anger. ‘How about I show you all the freaky things I can do?’ That part came out in English.
Tom’s blue eyes flashed and darkened dangerously. They were almost black and there were specks of red around the edges as he pointed a finger at Billy.
The bullies froze in place. Roots came up out of the ground to wrap around the feet of the boys.
All the hatred and anger that Tom had kept in the back of his mind surfaced and his grin turned feral. He was going to show these horrible children what they had always accused him of. He was going to get revenge for all the times they had pushed Harry, for all the times they had laughed at he and his favorite person when they had decided to read under the shade of their favorite tree.
Billy was trying to say something, but instead of words he only made gurgling sounds. His lips were starting to turn colors and his eyes began to roll and bug out.
‘Remember that time I almost drowned because you pushed me into the ocean?’ Tom asked lightly while looking at his nails. ‘I was under the water for what…2 or 3 minutes. I couldn’t breath. I didn’t know which way was up or down.’
With a sharp laugh Tom let Billy breath after the boy struggled for several long minutes. ‘Oh! Or how about the time you hit Harry with that bat?’
Billy doubled over in pain and a trickle of blood dribbled past his lip. Then a bright bruise blossomed across Billy’s temple.
Tom’s magic washed over Billy and the others as he relived so many of tortures that Billy had put him and Harry through. He numbed some of Billy’s pain, intending on letting it all crash over the boy all at once when Tom was done.
‘The only reason you are even alive is because of Harry.’ Tom’s words were almost a hiss as he grabbed Billy’s chin to make him look into Tom’s eyes. The other boys were crying silently as they suffered through the things Tom was making them go through.
Billy and the others had done more than just physically assaulted him and Harry. They had attacked emotionally as well. So, with his and Billy’s eyes locked together, Tom took hold of all of his magic and drove it into Billy’s mind.
Memories and thoughts assaulted Tom and it disoriented the young wizard for a moment before he was able to get back into control.
‘From this day forward, Billy, you will feel fear whenever you hear the creak of the floorboards. You will jump whenever someone reaches out to you. You will piss yourself whenever a dog comes close to you. You will never again be able to stand near a window or close to any ledge without feeling like you are falling. When you see water you will quake and feel like you are drowning the way you almost drowned me.’
It was a curse that Tom engraved into Billy’s mind using the overwhelming wave of magic he’d summoned from the depths of the hatred he had for the boy.
When it was done Tom took a step back and released his hold on Billy and the others. Billy’s friends fled in terror, their minds altered just enough so that they would never be able to talk about what had just happened, but Billy fell to his knees. His eyes were wide and unseeing as his mind processed everything that Tom had changed and added to it.
‘I hope you’ve learned your lesson.’ Tom smiled pleasantly before turning to head for the shed like he had originally planned. ‘Oh!’ He glanced over his shoulder at Billy one last time. ‘I left a gift for you in your room. A little something to remember me by.’
He’d done all of that without a wand and Tom couldn’t have been happier.
When Tom went back inside after his search inside and out of the orphanage he found Harry helping to set the first of the food out.
‘Hey Tom!’ He grinned and waved until Tom waved back with a roll of his eyes. ‘Martha let me help make breakfast! We have pancakes, eggs, and some fruit!’
It would have been nice if there had been some ham or bacon, but at least they had some fruit.
With food on their plates Harry and Tom went to their usual table and began eating. It took Tom all of a second to see that Harry was upset about something.
‘Harry?’
‘You did something outside.’ Harry’s expression turned sad and he refused to look up from where he was pushing around a slice of apple around on his plate. ‘ Something dark.’ Harry could count on one hand the amount of times he’d felt that darkness from Tom.
Tom set his fork down and frowned at Harry. ‘What I did was a long time coming. Don’t worry yourself about it.’ His words were sharp and brooked no argument.
‘I don’t care how you use your magic Tom!’ Harry whispered urgently. ‘I just don’t want you to get hurt! For all I know you were being attacked and t
hat’s why your magic had gotten so big.
With wide eyes Tom leaned away from Harry. He hadn’t considered that. Harry could sense magic, but he couldn’t exactly tell what the intent was or why the magic was being used.
‘I was scared.’ Harry whispered even softer. His head hung and his fork dropped onto his plate.
As much as Billy had deserved what had been done, Tom should have waited until he had told Harry what he was going to do. It had been such a spur of the moment thing though! It wasn’t like Tom had planned on confronting Billy. In fact Tom would have avoided the bully altogether if he had had the choice.
‘I’m sorry.’ Tom slowly reached out to touch Harry’s hand. The smaller boy jerked a little before lifting his head to smile at Tom. Harry’s eyes were watery, but he didn’t look upset or angry at all. He truly had been scared. ‘Forgive me?’
Harry nodded quickly and wiped away the tears that had been building up in his eyes. He was tempted to ask Tom what he had done, but Harry wasn’t sure if he actually wanted to know.
It wasn’t hard to figure out what had happened though when a few minutes later Billy stumbled into the orphanage. His eyes darted around frantically and when he saw Tom he squeaked in terror and then raced up the stairs to his bedroom.
Harry actually felt a little happy that Billy had finally been punished for all the years of torture he had dished out on the two friends.
It was around 9 in the morning when Mr. and Mrs. Malfoy arrived. Harry felt it the moment they had appeared just outside the building. Both he and Tom were waiting in the front hall when the door opened.
Mrs. Malfoy strode forward quickly with a warm smile as she gave Tom and then Harry gentle hugs.
‘Have you made your decision?’ Mr. Malfoy asked, his cane making a deep clacking sound each time it came down onto the wood floor.
All the Malfoy’s need was to see Tom nod before Mr. Malfoy was walking towards Mrs. Cole’s office.
‘We have a room all made up for you Tom.’ Mrs. Malfoy chatted away happily as she waited for her husband to finish signing the paperwork that Mrs. Cole would have for them. They weren’t adopting Tom, just transferring guardianship from Mrs. Cole to themselves. ‘And since Harry is staying with you we made up the guest room for him.’
Tom nudged at Harry then and glanced down at Harry’s pocket where the letter to the Malfoy’s was.
‘Oh!’ Harry pulled out the letter and held it out to Mrs. Malfoy. ‘My family sent this for you.’
‘Hm?’ The older woman took the envelope and turned it over in her hands. The envelope was lightly sealed with a simple spell and when she broke the spell the envelope opened up.
She scanned the words on the letter quickly before smiling. ‘Your relatives went through a great deal of trouble to make sure you could visit Tom.’ Mrs. Malfoy stated as she folded the letter back up. She’d give it to her husband to read over when the made it back to the manor. ‘Turning a tree into a permanent portkey! There must be quite a few notice-me-not spells around that tree.’
Tom had to fight the urge to roll his eyes. He couldn’t believe their benefactors had included his and Harry’s tree in all the schemes.
‘Don’t worry dear. We’ll make sure you get back to the park every week so you can get home to your relatives.’ Mrs. Malfoy didn’t understand why Harry had to go back every week for a single day, but she couldn’t exactly complain. Her own family had quite a few eccentricities that many others would raise an eyebrow over.
Both boys felt immense relief over the fact that Mrs. Malfoy believed the letter. As long as one of the adults trusted what was written there then they should be fine.
‘I don’t mean to offend either of you,’ Mrs. Malfoy said as she looked over the boys clothing. ‘But perhaps a shopping trip is in order.’
Harry looked down at himself at the clothes he was wearing. The Dursley’s had been good about getting him actual clothes that could fit, but they weren’t exactly the most fashionable. He had a few things from Tom as well that he wore when he was visiting the past. Again they weren’t the best in the world.
The older boy had expected as such and he simply nodded.
‘That’s all taken care of now.’ The group turned to look at the Malfoy senior as he returned. He was walking swiftly so his cane didn’t even bother to touch the ground. ‘I swear Muggles have such convoluted guardianship laws.’
His wive nodded in agreement before smiling at the two boys. ‘Shall we go? We’ll go drop your things off at the manor and see if Abraxas would like to join us for our shopping trip.’
Mr. Malfoy didn’t even ask about that. He was more interested in leaving the building before any more muggles made appearances.
The trip back to the manor was fast, but just as equally disorienting as it had been the first time Harry had been apparated. There had to be a better way to travel around quickly.
Abraxas wasn’t especially eager at the idea of shopping, but he did agree to go, whispering to Harry how he couldn’t just leave the two boys to his mother’s handling alone.
As the adults spoke with each other Abraxas led the way up to Tom’s new room. ‘It’s right across from my room so if you ever need anything I’ll be right there. Harry’s guest room is down the hall.’
The younger boy felt apprehension of being so far away from Tom. He had always slept in the same room as Tom whenever Harry was in the past.
Tom, when he first looked at his room, was positive he’d died or was having a dream. The room was huge with it’s own personal bathroom off to one side and a fireplace nestled against one wall with several comfortable seats. On either side of the fireplace were bookshelves. The shelves only had a few titles, leaving plenty of room for Tom to fill with his own books. Tom squashed down the impulse to jump onto the bed to see just how plush it was.
Harry had no such impulse control and was instantly jumping around on the bed. If they wanted Harry could easily fit in the bed with Tom at night; it was nearly three times the size of the bed back at the orphanage.
‘Mother and father weren’t sure what colors you would prefer so they stuck to the family colors. If you would prefer something else things can be changed.’ Abraxas was enjoying watching Harry squealing as he ruined the perfectly made blankets just to bounce and jump.
The shopping trip lasted hours and Mrs. Malfoy insisted on getting many things for both boys. Abraxas kept the two entertained for the most part, but he somehow ended up with several new shirts as well.
It was a good thing the boys had left Ophion and Ladon back at the manor to explore and learn about their new home.
Tom considered it a miracle when he was able to convince the older woman to let them go to the bookshop, Flourish and Blotts, so he could look at the book selection there.
‘We have a huge library you know.’ Shopping for books was not something that Abraxas enjoyed doing in his spare time. Still he had agreed to the shopping trip so it wasn’t like he could get out of it now.
‘Mr. Malfoy told me, yes, but I would like to see what might be available here.’ Tom explained lightly. He had already found a book about magic sensitivity that he was sure would be useful for Harry. The younger boy was looking at a few books that had colorful covers.
He was also on the hunt for that one book that his benefactor had suggested he get. ‘Light, Dark, and the Shadows between’. If he went straight for the book Abraxas might get suspicious; so instead Tom was just grabbing any book with an interesting title.
‘We have that one.’ Abraxas commented when Tom picked up a book on ancient families and bloodlines. ‘Father will probably give you a bunch of books on pureblood traditions too. They’re rather dry though.’
Of course Abraxas had had to read those books as a child. It had been a part of his training as the future head of the family. It wouldn’t do for a Malfoy to make a mess of a social situation.
Tom found nearly a dozen books of interest along with the one book he’d been intending
on getting. Harry found a few, mostly children’s books, that were added to Tom’s pile.
Mrs. Malfoy insisted on paying for the books even though Tom knew he had the money.
That was another thing that worried Tom. The Malfoy’s had yet to talk to him about his finances. With his yearly allowance Tom wasn’t nearly as rich as the wizarding family, but he could take care of himself.
‘Don’t you fret about money dear,’ Mrs. Malfoy told Tom as she finished the transaction. ‘We’re your guardians now. It is our duty to make sure you are taken care of.’ She smiled warmly at Tom as she shrank the books down to store in his bottomless back. ‘Besides, it’s such a nice change to have a young man in the house that enjoys reading.’
The wink from Mrs. Malfoy had Abraxas scoffing and arguing how he read quite frequently.
‘Now. How about we get some treats before we head back to the manor? There’s a sweets shop right over there that carries some licorice wands that Abraxas particularly enjoys.’
As if there were any chance the boys would turn down an offer to get sweets. Tom may not have had a sweet tooth as big as Harry’s, but he was still a boy.
The day ended with Tom setting his belongings on the shelves and his clothes in the wardrobe; after everything had been returned to their proper sizes.
Harry was laying on his back over on Tom’s bed with one of his new children’s books.
‘I got this book for you.’ Tom told his younger friend as he carried the book on magical sensitivity over to Harry.
Harry eyed the new book with interest before he set down his children books, who’s title had something to do with a beetle or bard, and took the book Tom was holding out.
It was a fairly big book and Harry was holding it between his hands apprehensively. ‘Do I really have to read this?’ He asked as he opened the cover to look at the small writing within.
‘Eventually. It’d be nice if you finished it before summer ended.’
Tom had always needed to bribe Harry into reading text books and he wasn’t surprised that he would have to do the same now. ‘If you finish it quickly maybe I can convince the Malfoy’s to let us go to the beach.’
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