Bloodied Angel ~ Finished

7

Harry knocked on the door to Riddle's manor, his foot tapping nervously.

It had been a few weeks since they'd last spoken in person. Over this period time, Harry had managed to put nearly all of his patients into hospitals all over the world. He still had specialized meetings with a few, like Neville Longbottom, George Weasley, and his own brother.

Tom also appeared to be busy. He put out many, many, many apologies and donated money to several charities, muggle and magical. He wasn't too busy to have Harry over, though.

The door opened, interrupting Potter's thoughts.

"Please, come in. Sorry for making you wait." Tom smiled at the sight of him.

"Ah, don't worry about it. I was able to admire your beautiful garden." Harry motioned his head towards the well-kept plants around him.

"Thank you. Does tea sound alright?" Harry followed him inside.

"Yes, tea sounds nice." The doctor slowed his pace to look around at Tom's house.

The floors were wood, that was polished to reflect like a mirror, and his walls were painted an off-white color. The decor was simple and elegant.

"Sit down wherever you like. I feel we have a lot to talk about." Harry nodded, taking a seat on a leather couch. Meanwhile, Tom summoned a house elf and asked for tea. "So, how has life been?"

"Not bad mostly. A little stressful, of course."

"That was expected. How is Longbottom doing?"

"Much better. He's such a sweet young man and very patient. He's getting using to the prosthetic." Said Harry, a proud smile finding its way on to his face.

"Good. And your brother?"

"Almost fully healed, no signs of infection."

"I'm glad." The house elf appeared, setting two cups of tea, a pot, and a few plates of biscuits in front of them. Harry thanked the elf quietly, pouring two cups.

"How are you doing?" Tom let out a long breath.

"Fine, I suppose. Not great, but not as bad as before. I do hope I don't bore you with all of this." Harry shook his head quickly.

"Of course not! I told you I'd be your therapist when we last spoke."

"So we can talk about whatever?"

"Yeah, nothing is off limits."

"Umm, where did you get your education. I never heard or saw you at Hogwarts." Harry grinned as fond memories of childhood went through his mind.

"I graduated from Durmstrang."

"Really? I never would have thought that! So James went to Hogwarts and you went to Durmstrang?"

"Yes. I was very focused on my future. We made sure to spend holidays together, though. I'm very happy we managed to stay close."

"Ahh, I see. What did you do after graduation?"

"I worked at St. Mungo's for a while, then Hogwarts as a healer. You had already finished schooling, so we never got the chance to talk or anything. I did hear about you from students though." Tom flushed. They probably weren't good things.

"Oh. Did you learn Russian?"

"A lot of languages were spoken there. I got a tutor a few years before going to learn Polish and a bit of Russian."

"Was going to Durmstrang your parents' idea?" Harry shook his head, laughing softly.

"Not at all. When I told them I didn't want to go to Hogwarts, they freaked out. I still don't know if my father will ever forgive me. I had to beg and nag them like crazy. Eventually, they just caved in." Tom smirked.

"So independent at such a young age. How old were you?" Harry hummed to himself while thinking.

"Six or seven maybe."

"Are you still friends with people from Durmstrang?"

"I'm very close with a few of them still. In fact, I just went to my best friend's birthday party a few days ago. He just turned 25. Speaking of birthdays, isn't  yours coming up soon?" Tom shrugged.

"In a little more than a week. The 31st."

"Our birthdays are both on the 31st, I didn't know that. Mine is in July." Harry looked up at the ceiling. "I just realized Christmas is two days away." Tom chuckled.

"Did you remember to get presents for everyone?" Harry nodded.

"I do shopping all year and hide it until the right time comes."

"Smart. Did you get a gift for me?" He meant this as a joke, but Harry nodded.

"I did, actually. I'll have to send it soon." Tom's eyes widened.

"Really? I didn't think of buying you something." Harry smiled, shrugging.

"You're stressed enough at this point, don't worry about it. So, what do you plan on doing next?"

/:/

Harry had drank three cups of tea and had munched on many biscuits before he decided it was finally time to leave.

"I'd best be going now, Tom. It's getting late." Riddle frowned slightly.

"I do suppose you're right. Thank you for visiting me. I enjoyed myself very much." Tom stood, escorting him to the door.

"Keep sending letters, they're the highlight of my days." Harry put his wooly cloak on as the taller wizard opened the door.

"I will, goodnight."

"Goodnight."

Potter abruptly stopped halfway out the door. He turned back, smiling brightly. He waved goodbye, turned again, and walked to his muggle car.

Tom felt his heart lurch. He loved how the corner of Harry's eyes wrinkled when he smiled like that. He loved his shy expressions. He loved Harry's laugh and was confident he would never tire of the beautiful sound.

Tom Riddle had done something bad.

He had fallen.

A/N: hi there, thank you all for being so patient with me even though I like never update?

On another note, I've decided this is the end. I don't really know what else to write. Hopefully no one is too disappointed with me :/

I just really struggled while writing this. Maybe it's because I have literally a billion other stories to update. Only GG knows why I've started so many. Too many ideas!!!