Unfogging the Future

The Writing on the Wall

ActualWeeb: For you Wattpad users, guess who did it again? I did. 'It' being updating on Wattpad a day late after I already updated on fanfiction. 

Guess who's ill in bed and can't even stand up long enough to make herself food? MEEEEEEEEEEE! Since I'm sick, I was able to finish the UtF chapter so I can torment y'all, and after I post this I'll probably start on the new chapter, too. The reason I forgot to post on Wattpad here is because I was so sick, I just wanted to put my laptop away immediately and lie back down.

As for the cliffhanger that the last chapter ended on...I'm not resolving that. Not yet, anyways, but I will by the end of the story. Instead, I'll show you the two possible outcomes of the last chapter, and then let you know which one is the true ending later.

Anyways, on to the story! I do not own Bella Potter.

There were two possible outcomes to Bella's question. The first one was ideal, and took away suspicion from Tom, but added suspicion to where he came from.

"Yeah," Tom answered. "I love you." Bella stared at him; he wasn't lying.

"Alright," she said. "Are you working with Crystalline?"

"No," he said. "I dunno her." Bella could tell he wasn't lying then, either, but that begged the question: Was he really the same Tom Riddle from their timeline?

"Thank you for answering my questions, Tom," she smiled. "Shall we go read?"

Just before they left the kitchen, Bella paused.

"And just so you know, I love you, too."

The second outcome was far less than ideal, and added more suspicion to Crystalline.

"Truthfully, no, I cannot feel love," Tom answered. Bella stared at him, shocked- his cute and innocent demeanor was gone, and Bella could only see a cold and bored boy in front of her. "I acted like a normal child this whole time to gain your trust in this strange place, but I don't actually care about you."

"Why are you being honest about this?" Bella frowned.

"You can already tell when I'm lying, can't you?" He jumped down from the counter. Bella stared at him. His smooth poker face and cold demeanor reminded her of herself.

"You don't have to worry about me," he continued. "I'm not a threat to you."

"Why not?" Bella asked. "Why are you on my side?"

"Well, I've already figured it out, you see," he yawned. "That I'm Lord Voldemort. Knowing myself, I probably wouldn't like the fact that there's another me walking around. The safest option would be to cater to your side for protection."

"How do you know we can protect you?" she asked, folding her arms.

"I'm not stupid," he continued. "I know you must be stronger than Voldemort. This series is about you, and in the end, you must be the one to defeat him."

"After we go back, and I do defeat him," said Bella, "what do you plan to do then?"

"Clearly, you'll be very famous and powerful after that. I plan to stick by your side for awhile, and then branch away from you slowly, to become my own powerful person."

"I see," Bella sighed. "Thank you for being honest with me."

"You'll continue to help me with this lie, right?" Tom asked. "If you continue to act like you like me, people will trust me."

"Of course," she nodded. "If I'm kind to you, and let you pretend to be an innocent boy, you won't join the other side. What other choice do I have?"