Marked • Tom Riddle

His Late Night Companion

   I had dug this hole for myself and now I had no choice but to deal with it unless I wished for it to be my grave. Looking at the two notes before me after having read them, I couldn't believe how stupid I had been to go along with the madness of finding the hidden truth about some phantom known to me only by the letter M. I wished I could go back and talk some sense into pre-dinner Karina so that I, post-dinner Karina, would not have to clean up this mess. But it was what it was and I knew that even now after witnessing the Dark Lord's disgusting display of power over me, my curiosity would not allow me to escape so easily. Especially not now that I had been given a glimpse of how the Dark Lord could behave. No, I would find the truth about this M, even if it drove me into madness.

   But I had to be smart. 

   If I were to uncover information throughout my stay here, I couldn't simply just keep writing notes to myself about all my findings before obliviating my memories. No, that was too much a hassle. The notes would pile up and the possibility of someone like Lucinda finding them was too big a risk. Merlin knew the Dark Lord would not like me hiding information from him, that much was clear. 

   So, after having read M's note and my own note again, I held the tip of my wand to my tempol and carefully extracted the information I would need to begin my search. I knew of the perfect place to put the memory too, somewhere that could not be so easily accessed, someplace where Lucinda couldn't accidentally stumble upon, someplace that I would reach for every day. 

   Taking the memory, I placed it into Grandmother's locket and shut it tight. Tomorrow, I would open the locket to look at Grandmother and find the memory. I knew myself well enough to know I would look at the memory and my knowledge would be restored. However, I had to take care of the evidence left behind by myself and M. Taking the two notes, I burned them to ashes and poured them in with the other ash in the small fireplace in my room. 

   Then, it was time for the part I hadn't been looking forward to. 

   Sighing, I placed my wand at my tempol once more, "Obliviate."

   "What in Merlin's name am I doing?" I questioned, feeling my legs begin to ache from being crouched down next to the fireplace for so long. Standing, I stared in confusion at the four-poster bed. I had just been there only a moment ago. How did I get all the way over here by the fire? Had the Dark Lord's cold response at dinner had such an impact on me that I couldn't remember my own actions? I shook my head in disappointment and at my own patheticness. 

   Whatever, I had to move on. What had happened had happened. Now I knew better than to keep things from the Dark Lord. How stupid of me to have believed I could actually hide something from him in his own home. No, I would not make that mistake again. With a sigh, I changed into a silk dressing gown and headed over to the welcoming bed and allowed myself to slip into a deep sleep. 

   When I awoke, it wasn't because of a warm embrace from the morning sun. No, it was because of the hunger pains that bubbled up inside my stomach. I hadn't gotten a chance to enjoy more than two bites at dinner, and now in the dead of night, it was coming to bite me in the back. I needed food. I couldn't sleep without food. Should I ring for Lucinda, I wondered but decided against it. She was probably fast asleep and it didn't feel right waking her for such a simple request. I knew where the dining hall was, so I assumed the kitchen had to be somewhere near it. I would find it on my own. 

   Stepping out of bed, I wrapped myself in my silk robe that did nothing to protect me from the cold and bitter air that even the fireplace couldn't chase out. Shuddering, I decided I would have to make this journey quick if I didn't want to freeze.