(DISCONTINUED) The Serpent [Tom Riddle]

New Year's Eve

The Serpent
[Every great evil has a humble beginning]

31st December 1926
Friday

A woman wrapped in rags walked through the cold streets of London.
Her face was covered by a hood to protect herself from the freezing snowstorm.
The rags had some holes here and there, but she wrapped it tightly around herself trying to protect her huge belly from the freezing wind.

The woman was pregnant.

Merope Gaunt felt herself getting weaker, as she suddenly tripped and fell to the ground. She silently thanked whatever God was responsible for the deep snow, because otherwise she would have fallen onto the hard concrete floor.
The woman stood up again, and stumbled through the streets.
She looked eagerly into the windows of the houses where families sat together happily.

She envied these people!

Through a window she saw a boy and a girl, both seemed very young, three and four, guessed Merope.
They played with wooden building bricks.
As they managed to build a large tower, the boy apparently cried for his parents because they appeared shortly afterwards and looked at the tower.
The little boy looked up at his parents, pride showing in his deep blue eyes.
The girl smiled sweetly, and her face was beamed beautifully.

Merope envied this girl!
She was pretty, prettier than her and she was only three!
Merope, however, squinted, and had dirty, matted hair.
Her face was haggard and looked even uglier at the moment.
She had never been pretty.
The nose of the Gaunt girl was crooked, her father had once told her that it was her brother Morfin's fault, because he had beaten her with a frying pan once.
Merope hadn't cooked properly that day, she had burnt the food slightly.
Morfin had become angry and beaten her with the fryingpan.

Merope had been beaten often.
By her father.
But mostly by Morfin.
He and she had never gotten along.
Merope never got any attention!
Her brother was the brilliant son in the eyes of her father, she was just sort of there, like a piece of furniture that belonged to the house.
That fact had never hurt her as much as now.

The little girl on the other side of the window laughed and was lifted up by her father.
Merope went on, because she suddenly felt repulsed at so much happiness.

She quickly turned around, continued her search.
But nothing!
And moreover, she was overcome by an even more terrible dizziness.

She pressed her hands on her belly.
The child would be Slytherin's their!
It was precious!
The only thing that was left over from Tom Riddle's love.
But, was it really love?
No, Merope had realized it too late.
He had never loved her!

She thought, that the potion would help him realize his feelings for her.
Maybe they could be together if he had the courage to stand against his family.
Maybe he would at least love her after taking the potion for so long.
But nothing!
He had left her.
Her, his wife!
And their unborn child!
He had looked at her belly with disgust.
As if the child inside it was a spawn from hell!

Tom had looked at her for quite a long time before he had spat at the feet, gave her a venomous look and with the words: "Go to hell and take that- that cursed thing with you!" He slammed the door and rode away!.
He had left her and the child to fend for themselves!

How could he do that?
They had had such a good time!
If Merope had only kept giving him the potion for longer!
But no.
It was too late.
Her great love, Tom Riddle, was gone.
Just like her will to live.

The only reason why she wandered through the streets of London was the child!
The child, for which she would do anything!
But Merope was greatly weakened, and repeatedly a wave of pain her going through abdomen.