Darkness and Devotion - A Tom Riddle Story

The Graveyard

Tom paced around the field where Evelyn had just been standing two damn seconds ago. "Where the fuck is she?" he seethed more out loud than anything because Mattheo knew just as much as he did. "She fucking disappeared!"

"Umm, Tom," Mattheo said softly. "We're wizards. We all can disappear."

He ran his fingers through his hair. He didn't care about his appearance right now. Hell, he didn't care about anything right now. Why should he when she was gone again? 

"Well, she can't. She can't just fucking do that. She can cry and scream and do whatever she wants but she can't fucking leave."

Tom felt an unfamiliar sting in his eyes. When he spoke again, his voice broke into pieces that sounded like shards of glass. Fragile. Shattered. 

"Why did she leave?"

And Tom fell to his knees in the field and sobbed.

⋆ ⁺ ₊ ⋆ ☾ ⋆ ⁺ ₊ ⋆ 

Evelyn spent over half an hour in the nursery she lost just looking around, imagining what her life might have been like if she had grown up in the home she was meant to. But despite how horrible her life had been, despite the trauma she had endured, she wasn't sure if she had any regrets. She wished she knew her mother, wished she hadn't had to go through that, yes. But, in a way, Evelyn was beginning to realize that her trauma shaped her into who she was today. If she hadn't spent many nights in her bedroom, terrified of her grandparents, she might not have found the dark horror books she so loved, books that she used to reassure herself that despite how bad her world was, it could have been worse. If she hadn't been bruised badly the night she came to Hogwarts, she might not have sought solace in the library, meeting Tom on her way back. If she hadn't gone through a week of hell in the dungeons, she might not have known the depths of her father's love for her, even though he was really just a vision. 

Evelyn wished she knew her mother and she wished she knew what it felt like to be loved in a home like this one. But what was done was done and she couldn't change it now. All she could do was move on and move forward.

Nightfall quickly came to the house in Chelsea. It was dark and thunder roiled in the distance—part of her wondered whether it was a normal storm or if Tom was making his way to the London metro.

"I have to get going," Evelyn said finally in the late hours of the night. "But I can come back. Perhaps this summer."

Vivian looked distressed. Her eyes widened and, at that moment, Evelyn realized that she was quite a few inches shorter than her niece. "Oh, please stay the night. Please. I don't get company often so you would be doing much such a favor."

But Evelyn heard another boom of thunder and realized she wasn't ready to see Tom again, not yet. So she shook her head and said, "I'm sorry but I can't. Another time."

Her aunt frowned but didn't push it. "Alright. But if you insist on going, can I give you something?"

She nodded. The woman disappeared into another room down the hall while Evelyn made her way back to the living room, slipping on the boots that were a bit too big for her. After a few moments, Vivian came back down the stairs clutching two things in her hand. Evelyn couldn't see what they were."

Her aunt walked over to her and held out her hands. Inside them were two things: the first was a locket, worn and made of gold. The second was a picture of... Evelyn gasped. "My parents."

Vivian nodded sadly. "I took this picture on the last day of their sixth year. The last time they saw each other." Her father had his arm wrapped tightly around her mother, pulling her tightly while she laughed at the camera. Regulus was smiling widely, staring down at the woman. The picture moved and soon, both of them were looking at the lens and waving.