Always || Tom Riddle

Tom Riddle's trial

"Are you sure you want to watch this?" Charlus asked from beside me as we headed through the Ministry of Magic towards the trial room. "Yes, I need to see what happens. Tom would do the same for me" Stepping into the elevator, I clung to the handle as the gates were shut and the elevator moved at high speeds to each department. "Department of mysteries"  This was our stop, I hesitantly looked to Charlus over my shoulder, who sent me an encouraging smile, gesturing with his head for me to step out of the elevator first. Taking a deep breath to calm myself, I began to make my way towards the courtroom where Tom's trial was to be held. 

Upon entry into the courtroom, it became apparent just how many people were interested in Tom's trial. The crowd which had gathered in the courtroom ceased all conversation, turning around in their seats to look at me and Charlus, many of them had been at my trial, and so as they glared down at me from their seats in the courtroom I started to feel like a fish out of water. I spun round and attempted to leave, only to have Charlus' firm grip prevent me from doing so. "I can't do this, Charlus. I can't. They all want me in prison!"  He glanced at the people gathered in the courtroom quickly, before looking at me once more. "Yes you can, Clara, and you will do this" He guided me to our seat, keeping a supportive arm around me as I avoided all eye contact with the people in the courtroom, but remained fully aware of their eyes boring into my back. 

Their conversations began once again, and after several agonizing minutes of waiting Cornelius Fudge stepped into the room, his black robes swishing behind him as he took his seat in front of the podium. The room was darkened, and the papers of Tom's crimes were handed to Fudge whose eyes moved over them sceptically. Abruptly, the doors of the cage that had been placed in the middle of the courtroom opened, the moment Tom appeared behind the sharpened spikes and bars, I held my breath; his eyes frantically searched the crowd until they landed on me, softening marginally before they flicked over to Fudge. "Tom Riddle, do you deny that in the winter of  1943 you did indeed murder Tom Riddle senior, and Thomas and Mary Riddle in cold blood; framing your obscene crimes on your uncle, Morfin Gaunt?"

"No, I do not" Gasps of horror resounded within the courtroom, a low hum of muttering and whispers started to grow louder and bolder, forcing Fudge to silence them with his gravel. "Order!" The conversations came to a halt, and the trial continued. "And do you have anything to say in your defence?"  Tom looked to the ground like a schoolboy having been sent to the headmaster's office.  "I have evidence in defence of Mr Riddle. If only you would be so kind as to allow me to justify why Tom Riddle is innocent" Tom's eyes snapped over to Dumbledore in an instant, my breathing deepened as hope began to rise within me, if Dumbledore proved to put a strong argument down for the Ministry, we may just get out of this unscathed. "Very well, continue" 

"Tom Riddle was born in Wool's Orphanage, left there by his dying mother. His father chose not to take Tom on, leaving his own son in such a dreadful place for someone so young-" Fudge raised his hand, silencing Dumbledore momentarily. "Do you have any evidence of innocence of this man other than his poor upbringing?" Dumbledore glanced over at me, and by the look on his face, he had not managed to persuade the servants to side with Tom. "He doesn't have them" From beside me, Charlus frowned, his gaze turning to me as he furrowed his brows in confusion. "Doesn't have what?"  I turned my head to Charlus, the lump in my throat growing larger by the second "The witnesses, he was supposed to bring them here. He said he would"  

"No, I am afraid I do not. However, if you hear me out, you might just want to hear what I have to say"  With an annoyed sigh and nod of approval from Fudge, Dumbledore turned to the audience. "In the case of Tom Riddle, there are several aspects that should be considered should the ministry decide that his sentence is lessened. One; is that his wife is carrying their unborn child-"  A few gasps echoed among the crowd "Two; is that he had not yet turned eighteen at the time of committing the crime, he had recently found out about his father's betrayal of his late mother, this anger towards his father for abandoning him and his mother in such a manner meant that he retaliated. So I think, that before condemning Mr Riddle to a life sentence in Azkaban, you should consider lessening his sentence on those accounts"  

Dumbledore paced back and forth as Fudge and the rest of the court decided what their conviction would be in hushed voices. Several agonising minutes later, and they shifted in their seats, Fudge cleared his throat preparing himself to speak. "The court has spoken and we have decided that despite all accounts of defence, Tom Riddle is to serve a life imprisonment in Azkaban-" 'No, no, no! They could not do this to us, they couldn't!'  " He will remain there until his death, serving a life sentence for the murder and exposure of magic to muggles!" I made to move from my seat to go to Tom's side, but Charlus had sensed what my reaction would be, and grabbed me from behind. "No! Let me GO!" I wrenched myself out of Charlus' arms, flinging him back into his seat in the process, running down the steps and clinging to the bars of the cage. 

"Tom, don't leave me!" I croaked out, my voice breaking off into sobs as Tom reached through the bars and attempted to comfort me. "Oh Clara, be strong my love, for me ok? You live your life as much as you can. Forget about me, please, promise me you will go on with your life" I shook my head furiously, sniffing as tears started to fall onto my cheeks. "No, I can't, not knowing you are stuck in that place!" He let out a sad laugh, as tears brimmed in his eyes, he fought to hold them back. "I love you, never forget that. Tell our child about me, don't let them grow up not knowing who their father is" I let out a sob, before being roughly manhandled away from the cage. "No! TOM! Tom! Come back to me, please find a way back to me!" Tom bit his lip as the cage was lowered and he disappeared from sight. Charlus pried the two Aurors hands off of me, and guided me out of the courtroom, keeping an arm wrapped around my shaking form to support me.

We apparated back to his house, where Penelope had been impatiently waiting for us to return with the news of Tom's trial. Not seconds after our feet had touched the muddy earth outside of the Potter's house, Penelope came rushing out of the house, still wearing her pink checkered apron from cooking the lunch. "What happened?!" She asked in a frenzy as she helped me to sit down at the dining room table. Her gaze expectantly flicking over to Charlus. "Tom has been sentenced to life imprisonment in Azkaban-"

"Oh Penelope, you should have seen his face when they told him, it was heartbreaking! I don't understand how they can do this to us, what with the baby on the way. You know what he said to me, he asked me to promise him that I would live my life...how can I live if part of me is gone?!" I cried, sobbing into my hands with my elbows resting on the table. Penelope sat in the seat beside me, pulling me gently into her arms as I wept into her shoulder. "Sssh, there must be something we can do" Charlus took a seat opposite us, clasping his hands together on the table. "Clara said something about witnesses and Dumbledore not having brought them there...if those witnesses can testify that he is innocent, then we may be able to get Tom out of prison. Clara, I am willing to try and find them myself if that is what it takes" Puffy-eyed, I pulled away from Penelope and looked at him hopelessly. "There's no point, Dumbledore already knows where they are, the fact that they weren't there today shows that they will not help us." 

*** 

Charlus and Penelope had finished eating half an hour ago, but remained sitting at the table, anxiously watching me as I tried to at least eat something, but to no avail, my body would not allow me to. "I don't feel hungry" I announced, pushing the plate away from me. "I am sorry, Penelope, I know how long it took you to make this, it does smell good, I just-" She smiled weakly, and took hold of my hand from across the table. "You see, it smells good to you, that's your body telling you it wants to eat!" I looked back to the plate full of food wearily. "No, I really cannot eat it...excuse me" I pushed my seat away from me and made for the safety of my room, shutting the door behind me, kicking my shoes off and climbing under the covers, sobbing into the pillow. Some time later I must have fallen asleep because when I regained consciousness it was dark outside. I turned onto my back in the bed, staring at the ceiling blankly up at the ceiling processing what had happened earlier in the day. 

A loud bang from outside gained my attention, I stood from the bed and peered out of the window into the darkness of the garden beyond, my eyes scanning it for anyone or any animal that could have been the source of such a noise. Not being able to see anything from the window, I decided to investigate, grabbing my wand and pushing my shoes on before beginning my search in the gardens. Still half asleep, I muttered 'lumos' under my condensing breath that flew away into the night air as I hesitantly made my through the gardens. Beside a rose bush was where I found the culprit of the noise, shivering against it and wrapping their black leather coat tightly around them. "TOM?!"