The Serenade of Persephone [tom riddle]

THIS HOUSE OF SORROWS, PITY AND STAINED DIGNITY || 02

TOM
THIS HOUSE OF SORROWS,
PITY AND STAINED DIGNITY
CHAPTER TWO

mentions of death

THE BOY HAD NOT SLEEP WELL THAT NIGHT, nor had he slept at all. He had grown up over the years, so the bed was not that comfortable or suitable for his height. The studs of his old bed creaked the moment he decided to seize the day by checking if all of his belongings from Hogwarts School of Wizardry and Witchcraft were at their place. A pointless attempt, as he had been doing that all the previous days, but there he was.

Even though his books were second-hand, they were meticulously placed in his suitcase without a wrinkle or tear. His wand was placed on his wooden desk, and his Hogwarts robes with the emblem of Slytherin House were hung from a peg in his closet ready to be worn. Luckily, the small candle he had lit the previous night was still there. Due to the recent bomb raids by the German Luftwaffe, London had been completely cut off from electricity. The boy had to find other ways to keep himself warm or to find light to study when the orphanage experienced a blackout.

It was not as harsh as the Blitz some years ago, which lasted approximately eight months, yet they still faced hardships.

The Wool's Orphanage, after all this time being crippled by the atrocities of war, had no love left for its children, nor did they have any left for it. The building had not been repaired for ages, and the red paint had started fading away, revealing the bare bricks beneath. It gave the impression of being profoundly abandoned, unsuitable for accommodating children without families. Perhaps this was due to the economic crisis of the previous years, the so-called Great Depression, and of course, the financial predicament the orphanage itself was facing.