Always || Tom Riddle

A visitor ~ Chapter two

I awoke the next day to Mrs Cole bringing in my breakfast on a tray, silently putting it down onto my desk. She jumped in fright at the sudden movement of me sitting up in bed in the corner of her eye. "Ah, Clara you gave me a fright there" Mrs Cole forced a smile in an attempt to hide her fear of me if she had her way I would be stuck in a mental institution. Regaining herself, she made for the door, a wrinkled hand reaching out for the doorknob so that she could escape as quickly as possible. The patron of Wool's orphanage paused, standing up straight as tall as her 5,6 frame would allow her, as her greying hair shone in the morning light that was being let in through the window opposite Clara.

"You are to stay in your room for the rest of this week, Lily and her friends are saying you are not being very nice to them."Mrs Cole took a deep breath in for reassurance before she began moving closer to my face until we were inches apart, and all I could see was the sickening scowl."Understand Miss Pevensie, that we do not tolerate bullying of any form in this orphanage"She spat out my name like it was revolting to her, but I took no notice at eleven years of age I was learning that it was important to be able to hide your emotions, especially from those who meant you harm. So I sat there quietly in my bed, impatiently waiting for Mrs Cole to leave and lock the door.As soon as the door was shut, I got out of bed, changing into a faded white dress with black leather shoes, and making an attempt to tame the bird's nest that was my hair. 

Moving over to the desk, I took a closer look at what I had for breakfast, wrinkling my nose up at the smell of it, I decided to wait for lunch. A knock sounded at the door shortly before it opened, revealing Tom who stood at the threshold as I stood in shock, my mouth hanging open."How did you do that?"I asked frowning at my new friend. "We're different we can do things that the others can't" Obviously, that was the only explanation I was to expect for he did not say anything else, but instead remained unmoving by the door. "Tom you can come in you know, I am not going to bite" The tray of food now very much forgotten, Tom entered the room, sitting on the bed awkwardly while I grabbed my worn out dice from the desk.

"Do you know how to play with dice?"I asked as I sat cross-legged on the bed beside him, taking the dice out of a small jar and placing them on the bed covers. "No?" He responded softly, sending me a questioning look as a smile tugged at my lips, as I began to explain the rules of the game. "Ok, so first of all, you pick both the dice up in your hands and then you shake and roll, one of us keeps the score, and whoever gets the highest score wins the game." Tom nodded, a frown appearing on his forehead as he processed the information, picking up the dice, shaking them and then swiftly letting them roll over the bed covers. "Did I do it right?"Tom asked hopefully; to which I smiled and nodded my head yes.

"I don't know that there is a way that you can get this game wrong" Taking my turn; lifting my notebook and pen from the pillow, scribbling Toms score onto his side of the page, before setting the notebook aside and taking the dice into my hands, shaking the dice feverishly all the while praying for a good score, before rolling the dice onto the bed and getting a measly score of five. Slightly agitated, I snatched the notebook up from the beside me, scrawling my own score down, looking scornfully down at Tom's much higher score of twenty. "You are much better at this than I anticipated" I muttered under my breath, as Tom proceeded to roll yet another high score which ended up being higher than mine once again.

"Well, I learnt from the best" Tom joked, aiming to get rid of the tense competitive atmosphere that had filled the room, it worked just as he had hoped, and earned him a series of high pitch laughter from me, only stopping upon catching a snippet of Mrs Cole's voice just down the hall. "What do we do?!"I whispered, to which Tom moved a finger to his lips, running across the hall back to his room. "Close the door and I will leave mine open, OK?"Tom muttered, a strangely calm expression on his face, I nodded as he sat down on his bed, sending me one last glance before I closed my door, It was not long after I had shut the door that I heard the unmistakably loud footsteps of Mrs Cole.

"I must admit there was some confusion upon receiving your letter Mr Dumbledore; in all the years Toms been here he has never once had a family visitor...there have been incidents with the other children...nasty things." Mrs Cole had paused a few feet away from Tom's open door while talking to the man, the clicking of her heels having stopped for a moment "Tom, you have a visitor." Mrs Cole cautiously announced after knocking on the gloomy green door, before scurrying off and leaving Mr Dumbledore with Tom. "How do you do Tom?"Dumbledore spoke up after a moment of silence, entering Toms room and turning to close the door, however, Tom was not about to break his promise. 

"Don't" Mr Dumbledore moved away from the door, taking a seat on Tom's bed while I worked up the courage to move closer to the door, inching forward and moving the keyhole cover aside, peeping through into Tom's room, where Tom and his visitor sat in a tense silence. "You're the doctor aren't you?" Tom was the first to break the silence, his eyes narrowing dangerously at the man sat before him, seeming to be warily watching his body language for any signs that the man was analyzing his behavior. "No, I am a professor" The man who went by the name of Dumbledore replied, seemingly calm and radiating knowledge from where he sat, hands clasped together comfortably on the bed. "I don't believe you...she wants me looked at, they think I am different"

"Well perhaps they are right"Tom visibly stiffened in his seat, a frown appearing on his forehead, while thousands of worried thoughts rushed through my head; what if he took Tom with him? Then I would be left alone again, having to face Lily and her friends on my own once more was something I did not think I could bear; not now I know what it's like having a friend to stick up for you. "I am not mad"Tom declared, anxiously shifting in his seat to get further away from Mr Dumbledore, who had made no move to get any closer to Tom."Hogwarts is not a place for mad people, Hogwarts is a school, a school of magic. You can do things can't you Tom? Things that other children can't"

"I can make things move without touching them, I can make animals do what I want without training them, I can make bad things happen to people who are mean to me...I can make them hurt...if I want. Who are you?" Mr Dumbledore edged forward in his seat, as though he had suddenly become more interested in the conversation. A flashback of the day before began to play in my mind, when Tom had helped me by scaring Lily away. "Well I am like you Tom, I am different"

"Prove it" The very moment the words left Tom's lips, the wardrobe was engulfed in flames. "I think there is something in your wardrobe trying to get out, Tom"Dumbledore nodded with his head in the direction of the flames, to which Tom hesitantly got up from his seat, moving in front of the wardrobe and reaching out to the door knob, before pausing, and turning his head over his shoulder to the professor, as he called himself. "Will it burn me?" Only after Dumbledore shook his head no, did Tom take hold of the door knob and open the door; as soon as Tom removed a tin box from the wardrobe he placed it onto the bed, just as the closet slammed shut and all signs of the fire vanished with it.

"Thievery is not tolerated at Hogwarts, Tom, but at Hogwarts you will be taught not only how to use magic, but how to control it. Do you understand me?" Dumbledore got up to leave, making it so far as the door when Tom spoke up again. "I can speak to snakes too...they find me, whisper things. Is that normal for someone like me?" Upon his turning away from Tom, I caught a glimpse of the confused expression on his face, by the looks of  it, he was clearly just as ignorant of the answer as Tom himself was. "Who is in this room?"Dumbledore asked, gesturing to my door, completely avoiding Tom's question. Thinking that he had most likely seen me staring through the keyhole, I hurried away and leaped onto my bed, grabbing the closest book and opening it, trying to slow my breathing to look as un-suspicious as possible. 

When Tom did not answer, Dumbledore knocked on the door, promptly opening the door and sticking his round it to see who was inside."Ah, I am terribly sorry to disturb you, I wonder if we might have a little chat. What's your name?"Dumbledore asked as he walked into my room with Tom looking worried behind him.

"Clara..."I replied putting my book down on the bedside table behind me, sitting up on the bed as Dumbledore took a seat on very edge of the bed. He nodded his head, acknowledging the fact that he was listening, while my gaze moved to Tom who stood frozen in his room, only being able to watch as things unfolded before him. "You see, I can sense that you are like me and Tom, you're different, it radiates off of you. How would you like to attend a school called Hogwarts?"Dumbledore asked, sending me a warm smile as I reflected on what that meant; I would no longer have to put up with Lily anymore, I would be free and rid of this orphanage for long lengths of time. "I would like that very much professor" 

"Good, a letter will arrive for you both containing what you will need equipment and uniform wise; basic items really, I have no doubt that with a little help you will find your way around easily enough! Good day!"Dumbledore cheerfully replied, standing from the seat and leaving me and Tom alone is our rooms, our doors open wide as we processed just exactly what had happened. We were going to Hogwarts.