Mark of Slytherin

Chapter 20

"He brought Harry?!" Hermione exclaimed, but quietly. They could see the warlord from where they were hidden, his hands all over her best friend. It made her furious.

"Come now, miss Granger," Dumbledore said from beside her, putting a calming hand on her shoulder. "We knew the probability of it was quite high."

"I know, but.. look at him!" She gestured. Harry looked bad. Not so bad as he had when she had a front-row seat to watching him get shot, but definitively not well enough to be out of bed yet. And certainly not to go travelling into the middle of the desert. What was Riddle thinking?!

"It'll be alright." Dumbledore soothed. "Remember the plan."

Right. Hermione nodded. The plan. They had a plan.

- - - - - - - - -

"Come, Harry." Riddle smiled at him, more teeth than anything else. "Let's go see what your friends have been up to, shall we?"

Harry shook his head, and wondered how far Riddle would push things if he just refused to get out. If the plan was to so some weird magic stuff to Harry, then he would probably be a quite essential part. But he was also injured so...

"Come now," the warlord leaned in through the open door, a warm hand on Harry's arm. "You can try to resist it all you like, but we both know I'll get what I want in the end. And this, pet, is not negotiable." His voice was gentle, but the threat was obvious.

Feeling rather shaky, Harry let himself be guided out the door. His legs felt weak and he couldn't help the way he stumbled as he put weight on them, grabbing hold of Riddle by pure reflex. The man didn't seem to mind, only helped him up and pulled him close. In the hot desert air it was stifling.

"Well then," Riddle raised his head and looked beyond Harry, at the soldiers gathered in front of the ruins. "I believe you know what to do. Search the ruins and bring any little rats you find to the central chamber. Do try to keep them alive." A pause. "At least for the moment."

The men rushed inside and Riddle shifted his grip of Harry, holding him tightly around the waist. With that he began to walk, a troupe of men falling into position around them, keeping them safe from any surprises. Well, keeping Riddle safe.

"Riddle," Harry tried again as they made their way toward the building The slow walk was enough to leave him slightly winded, but he needed to do whatever he could to stop this madness. "You don't want to do this! It's madness!"

The warlord tilted his head to look at him from the side. "Madness, you say."

"Yes! What exactly are you planning!? You, living forever and ruling the world? You know it's not going to work, all civilizations have failed once they get too large!"

The grin he got in response was fond. It was the kind of expression you would give a dog that had just done something stupid, but cute.

"Are you worried about me?"

"I'm no..!"

"But there is no need to be concerned. Unlike those fools of the past, I will succeed. But before that, you need to be protected." His grip tightened, fingers digging into Harry's side.

"But I don't want to live forever!" Harry hissed, pushing at him. "I don't want to rule the world!"

Riddle laughed, like Harry had just told the funniest joke. But the happiness quickly vanished as one of his men approached.

"What?"

"My Lord." The man went down on one knee. That felt rather excessive to Harry, but it did seem exactly like the sort of thing Riddle would get off on. "Our men report no sign of any life in the area."