Luna Lovegood and the Dark Lord's Diary

By: The madness in me

Fandom: harry potter

Summary: Tom Riddle's plans fall through when Ginny Weasley loses his diary shortly after starting her first year and it is found by one Luna Lovegood. A series of bizarre conversations follow. Luna? - Yes Tom? - I've been giving this a lot of thought...and I believe you may be insane. (Not crack. Plot takes a while to appear but it's there) See last chapter for fan art and translations.

Status: Completed

Fic type: Books/Harry Potter

Pairings/Main char.: Luna L., Tom R. Jr.

Published: 2017-03-16

Last updated: 2020-05-27

Words count: 72,373

Chapters count: 101

Converted using www.FF2EBOOK.com
Date: 2020-10-05

1. Hello?

29/11/1992 - Today I began tracking the movements of a probable skizer-gnatt infestation around the east tower. I've had some success with the turnip paste though results are sketchy. Tomorrow I will try adding onion.

Who are you and what in the name of Merlin's beard are you talking about?

Hello?

Hello. Who are you? Where is Ginny?

Ginny?

Yes Ginny.

Ginny Weasley?

Yes. Ginevra Molly Weasley. The owner of this diary.

This is Ginny's diary?

Yes. Why do you have it?

I found it. I didn't know who it belonged to and all the pages were blank.

Well now you know and you can return it immediately. Where is Ginny?

Well its 9pm so I expect she is in her dormitory.

Wonderful. You can return me first thing in the morning then.

Who am I talking to?

The diary.

How are you responding?

I'm enchanted to respond to my owner in order to offer advice.

I've never heard of that enchantment before.

That's because you're a child. I'm sure there is plenty you haven't heard of.

No...I don't believe that's it. Parchment can only be charmed to provide fairly basic pre set responses based on the instructions of the person charming it. If it were possible to charm it to the extent required to offer advice I would be aware of it.

Well...aren't you a clever one?

Yes. Why did you lie?

Who are you?

I'm Luna. Who are you?

My name is Tom and I'm getting very frustrated with you Luna. Give me back to Ginny.

No. I think I'll keep you for a while.

I am going to put the disclaimer here at the start and just have story text in the following chapters. I do not own the rights to Harry Potter or any of the characters and make no profit from the writing of this fic. Basically just conversations between Tom Riddle and Luna in an AU where Ginny looses the diary before it has any real influence on her.

2. Childhood

Luna it's been weeks, as you can see I am a perfectly harmless diary. Are you going to give me back?

No. Not yet.

Why? Is it because you are lonely Luna? Do you need a friend? I can be your friend Luna. Tell me about yourself. I will listen. I will be here for you.

Oh. That's very kind of you Tom.

I am kind Luna. I'm sorry if I seemed brusque when we first spoke. I just felt that I had to get back to Ginny. That she needed me. But now I think you might need me more. Let me be your friend Luna. Let me be your confidante.

Really? Are you sure?

Of course, I'm a diary, that's what I'm for. Let's start with some history. Can you tell about your childhood?

Well...ok. My parents are Xenophilius and Pandora Lovegood, they were very bright and taught me everything I know. I learned all about Gruffles and Todges when I was just five.

Uh, yes, Gruffles and Todges, of course.

That's not all, my mother taught me how to snare a Five Winged Pixie when I was six and how to sing to lure a Mossy Nymph into a net when I was eight.

A Mossy...Are you making these up?

Don't be silly. Of course I'm not.

Fine, continue.

Where was I? This disappearing ink is making it difficult to keep track.

You were saying about your mother.

Oh yes. Well, she was a wonderful mother but sadly when I was nine I lost her. There was a terrible accident with a spell she was creating to stun Toadies.

To stun what?...I mean, I'm so sorry, that must have been terrible for you.

It was. I miss her very much. After she passed it was just me and my father. He did his best but I know it must have been difficult raising a child and running his newspaper all alone. I tried to occupy myself when I could. Sometimes I played with the other children who lived nearby us.

Oh. Did you have many friends?

At first. A lot of them stopped playing with me after I tried to take them along on a vanderswump hunt. I believe it was their parents who told them to stay away. I think they were concerned the vanderswump was going to hurt them which is silly because everyone knows vanderswump's are gentle creatures that only eat buggle flies.

You know what? I change my mind. Ginny needs me far, far more. I insist you give me back to her. Now!

Oh I should probably tell you about my first encounter with the Golden Flue Sprouts. It was a very moving experience for me, as I'm sure it is for most girls.

Luna? Luna?! Stop writing.

I had just turned ten and father and I travelled to Italy in the hopes of witnessing the Gruffle migration...

Please?

3. Bullies

Are you crying on me?

No.

Yes you are.

Am not.

Are too.

Fine. So what if I am?

Why are you crying?

Why do you care?

I'm a diary. You're meant to vent your woes into diaries.

It's nothing. Just some girls in my class being rotten.

Rotten how?

Well, I got detention for going to class without my books, even though I knew I had packed them. I thought it may have been nargles that took them and said as much, but the Professor just thought I telling lies. After class I found out the girls in my dorm had hidden my books to get me in trouble.

That was mean of them.

Yeah.

I can help you get back at them.

How?

I know this great little stinging hex. Totally harmless but it will knock them down a peg.

What is it?

Ok, it's easy. No added wrist motions to worry about or anything. Just point your wand and say Crucio.

Tom...that's the torture curse.

No it's not.

Yes it is.

No it's not.

Yes it is!

It's not, I swear. Just try it. You'll feel better after.

I am not using an unforgivable curse on my classmates.

Fine. Whatever. Have fun in detention.

4. Nargels

Tom?

What now!?

Are you sure you've never seen a nargle?

If I say I have, will you give the diary back to Ginny?

Have you?

Yes of course I have Luna. Who hasn't?

If you've seen one, then what did it look like?

It..well...what do they look like to you?

You haven't have you?

No you ridiculous child, I have not seen one of your imaginary creatures! Give me back to Ginny!

What about a ruggy tree gnome?

No.

What about a...

NO!

5. Suspicions

Were you always a diary?

Yes.

I don't think you were.

Why?

You don't talk like a diary.

How would you know? How many diaries have you spoken to?

Just you.

Then how can you say I don't talk like one? If I'm your only frame of reference then doesn't it stand to reason that I speak precisely as a diary should?

Perhaps. I still don't think you were though.

I honestly don't care what you think.

I think you might be a ghost possessing the diary.

That is absurd. Ghosts do not posses things. That's just daft superstition.

I know that. But it's the only theory I have right now.

Let me know when you get a better one.

Tom?

What Luna?

How did you die?

I did not die. I am not a ghost!

Did a nightshade imp eat you? I hear they are highly dangerous. A necklace of barley ears would have protected you.

I do not wear barley ears

Obviously or the imp wouldn't have got you.

I was not killed by an imp. I was not killed by anything. For the last time, I am not a ghost!

Alright. I believe you.

Good. Finally.

You know you don't even have to wear the barley. I tuck mine into my socks.

I don't care...wait...you have grain in your socks?

Yes

Really?

Yes.

You honestly walk around with ears of grain stuffed inside your socks?

Of course. Like I said, nightshade imps are very dangerous.

And what exactly is grain meant to do?

It's protection.

How?

It just is.

How do you know it works?

Well obviously it works, I haven't been eaten by a nightshade imp.

I see... Luna?

Yes Tom?

When your mother was making up those experimental spells you told me about, did any of them happen to hit you in the head?

No

Are you sure?

Yes why?

Nothing, just a theory I'm working on.

Ok. If I've frightened you about the nightshade imps I can always give you some of my grain for protection.

No Luna, I do not want your sock grain.

I'll just put one ear between your pages now. I don't think nightshade imps eat diaries but it's better to be safe than sorry I suppose.

No. Luna. I don't want your sock barley. You keep it. Luna. Luna! Don't put that thing near me!

There you go. Now you're protected, you have nothing to worry about.

Take. It. Out.

6. Confusion

3rd February 1993

I am certain the skizer-gnatt infestation in the east tower is spreading.

I am certain there is no such thing as skizer-gnatts.

...

17th February 1993

I think there may be a gaggle of togger cubs living in the shrubs by the lake.

I think you may be deranged.

...

18th March 1993

I have confirmed my suspicions that there is a horngruff living in the fourth floor supply cupboard.

I have confirmed my suspicions that I am in the possession of a nutcase.

...

24th March 1993

I have just discovered there is a herd of thestrals living at the edge of the forbidden forest.

I have just discovered that...wait...thestrals?

Yes

Winged skeletal horse things you can only see if you've witnessed death?

Yes. A herd of them.

Stop throwing real animals in with your imaginary ones! You're confusing me!

7. Logic

What makes you so sure nargles aren't real?

Because if they were, someone would have seen them.

People have seen them.

You and your father don't count.

Not just us.

Lunatics associated with you and your father don't count.

That's just rude.

No it isn't. It's logic. If they were real someone would have seen them. If they had seen them they would have told others and provided proof and then everyone would know about them. Since no one sane knows about them they are obviously not real.

You could say the same about dragons.

What? Don't be ridiculous, obviously dragons are real. People have seen them.

There are approximately 6 billion muggles on this planet that would disagree.

Muggles? What do muggles have to do with it?

Simple. If you were to ask a muggle if dragons exist they would say no. Ask them how they know that they will say because no one has ever seen one, and if they had they would have told others and provided proof, and therefore everyone would know about dragons. Since no one claims to have seen them and no one is able to provide proof they exist they clearly must not exist. 'Surely' the muggle would argue, 'with billions of people living on this planet nothing as exceptional as a dragon could go unnoticed for so long'.

Yes but…

And yet you and I know dragons do exist Tom; dozens of breeds all across the world, some even living in the wild where muggles could potentially stumble on them, but if you were to stand before a muggle and tell them everything you know about dragons they would still not believe in them, even though you would be correct.

Yes, because the wizarding population uses magic to hide dragons, you fool.

Exactly. And if the existence of dragons, not to mention thousands of other magical creatures and the entire wizarding population itself, can be successfully hidden from 6 billion members of the muggle population for thousands of years don't you also think it's possible that maybe a few species of animals could exist in this world that have as yet remained hidden from the wizarding population too?

I….well…

Don't you think it's possible Tom?

I ….. suppose so.

So you concede that nargles might exist?

Fine. I won't say they do for certain but…they might.

Thank you.

I still don't think they do though.

And 6 billion muggles still don't believe in dragons.

8. Favours

Luna, I need you to do something for me. A favour. I was going to ask Ginny but since you refuse to return me I will have to ask you instead.

You see Tom, this is why I don't believe you are just a diary; because why would a diary need a favour?

Yes, yes, very well. I admit I am more than just a diary and I need your help.

If I help you, will you tell me the truth?

Yes Luna, I guarantee everything will be made clear soon enough.

Ok. What do you need?

I need you to go to girls bathroom on the first floor.

The girls bathroom? Why would you want me to go there? That's a very bizarre request Tom.

I know Luna, I know. But I need you to trust me ok?

You haven't given me much reason to.

Just try. Go to the bathroom and once there I will tell you what to do next.

Alright, fine but you had better start giving me answers after that.

I will. Thank you.

...

Luna? Luna?

Yes Tom?

Did you go to the bathroom?

Yes.

Good, good. What I want you to do now is...

I'm not there anymore. It's night now. I'm in my dorm.

What why? You were meant to consult me as soon as you arrived at the bathroom!

I know, and I was going to...but then I started talking to this lovely ghost...

9. No!

Luna, I know this is a long shot but...is there any chance I could maybe convince you to kill the rooster the half giant keeps by his hut?

No Tom. I'm not going to do that.

Please?

No.

It would be a great help to me.

No.

I'll tell you my secrets.

No.

I'll help you search for nargles.

No.

I'll listen to all your nonsense and won't say anything rude or sarcastic.

No.

I hate you.

I don't care. I'm not killing anything.

Ginny would have done it.

Then it's a good thing I took you away from her.

I really hate you.

10. Flowers

What's that smell? Why...why do I feel sticky? Luna? Luna what are you doing?

You can smell?

Apparently.

How?

I don't know, I hadn't actually noticed any smells before now. Whatever you're doing is causing...something.

That's interesting. What does it smell like?

It's...I don't know, sweet but...odd. What is it? What are you doing?

Oh nothing. Just pressing some flowers I found near the greenhouse.

What?! Take them out!

It will just take a few days.

No! Take them out now. I can feel them oozing into my pages. It's weird.

But if I take them out now they will ruin.

I don't care.

You'll be fine. Just relax and enjoy the smell. You said it was sweet.

That's not the point.

I wonder what else you can smell?

I swear to whatever ridiculous deity a nut like you might fear, if you start pouring things on me, there will be terrible consequences.

Here...try this.

Argh...was that pumpkin juice?!

Yes! Well done Tom, wait a moment I'll try something else. We can make it a guessing game.

NO! NO! Luna stop it!

This one is fizzy. Tell me if it tickles.

Chapter for Kharma who suggested Luna using the diary for flower pressing.

11. Choices

If you had the option would you rather be a Hornwinged snuffle trout or a Pulley-tot?

I'd rather be a Wizard and I'd rather you be some sort of insect so I could tread on you and grind down you into the ground

Don't be mean Tom, that's not how the game is played.

I didn't realise I was playing.

Well you are.

I think I'll pass.

If you play, I'll agree to stop putting things inside your pages.

I have your word on that?

Yes.

Fine...I'd rather be the second one. Whatever it was.

The Pulley-tot? Really? But they are so slimy!

I can't win with you can I?

12. Ginny

You know, it's such a shame the houses don't interact more.

Is it?

Yes. I've been here months and today was the first time I properly talked to Ginny.

You did? Did she mention me? Does she miss me?

I'm not sure, I didn't ask.

I bet she misses me. You don't understand how much she needs me Luna. When we were separated we were in the middle of a very important discussion about the troubles she's been having with some of her classmates.

Really? Oh but she's such a lovely girl. I think I'll talk to her tomorrow and see if she wants to be friends.

No! No I don't think that would be a good idea, really it would be better if you just give me back to her.

I've never directly approached a new friend before. Do you know what she likes so I can start a conversation?

I'm not telling you anything!

Honestly Tom, first you say you want to help her now you're preventing me from doing just that.

She doesn't need you to help her. It's me she needs. You are hurting her by keeping me away.

I don't believe that's true.

It is. You are a terrible person Luna. Poor Ginny's mental state if probably deteriorating by the minute without me and you don't even care!

Don't be horrid. That's not true. I'll speak to her tomorrow.

Don't you dar...actually, you're right. You should talk to her. I happen to be aware she is a great fan of skizer-gnatts. You can invite her to join you when you next track that infestation you told me about.

Is she really? That's a funny thing to be a fan of.

Are you kidding me? You are always going on about them!

Yes but I'm not a fan. They are terrible pests.

You are a terrible pest!

Well, if that's what she likes I can give it a try.

Good Luna. You do that.

...

Tom. I spoke to Ginny again.

And she thinks you're crazy and never wants to be your friend? Oh Luna that's such a shame.

Don't be silly Tom. You were right about the skizer-gnatts.

What!?

She didn't seem to know much about them but she was very interested in learning more. She's meeting me tonight to search for them.

She actually went along with that rubbish!?

Anyway I can't talk anymore at the moment. I have to prepare my turnip paste. Oh...please remind me later that I need more onions.

Sure thing. Right after I remind you to jump off a bridge.

13. Pets

I'm thinking of getting a pet. What do you think I should get?

Something venomous. How about a viper?

Be serious Tom.

I am being serious, I like snakes.

So do I.

You do?

Of course. You know I like all animals.

I know you like imaginary ones.

I do not.

Yes you do.

I do not. I just have a more open mind than a lot of people.

Luna if your mind was any more open it would be pouring out of your ears.

Don't be mean Tom.

Whatever. Anyway, if you like all animals then why not get a viper?

Well firstly because it is against the school rules, secondly I don't want a dangerous pet and thirdly I would like something fluffy.

Fluffy?

Yes.

Why fluffy?

Because I'm an eleven year old girl and I like fluffy things. It's really not that complicated.

In my defence most things with you tend to be excruciatingly complicated.

Do not.

To me they do. I can't even begin to figure you out.

Well maybe that is because you never try.

I don't want to try. Just knowing your mind exists in the same world as me is distressing enough. The thought of seeing inside it is my idea of hell.

You're not very nice Tom.

Then why do you keep talking to me?

I don't know. I find you interesting.

You find turnips interesting.

Turnips are interesting, they have so many uses!

And I have no interest in hearing any of them.

Suit yourself.

Get a cat.

What?

It's allowed in the rules, it exists, it's fluffy. Get a cat.

I could name it Tom.

Don't you dare.

14. Pranks

You're crying on me again.

So what?

So you're getting my pages soggy.

I don't care.

Well I do. Stop it!

Make me.

Can't you cry into a pillow like a normal preteen? Why do you have to subject me to it?

I don't know. I just..

Just what?

Nothing.

Tell me!

Those girls are stealing my things again.

Oh, is that all? I told you, Crucio them.

No Tom. I won't do that, but..

But?

Do you... do you know any other spells I could use? Not torture ones. Just to get back at them. Make them stop?

Why are you asking me?

I don't know. You seem to know things.

I do know things. I know lots of things.

Well can you help me?

Of course. You want to make them stop? I know one for that. It's easy. Just say Avada Kedavra, that will stop them for sure.

I'm not killing them Tom! You're no help at all.

Fine, fine. Pathetic child. I presume you are looking for a simple prank?

Yes.

I suppose I can manage that. How about something to turn their skin green?

That...would be alright. Is that all it does? Is it a spell?

A potion. You pour it on their pillow before they sleep and by morning they will be a lovely mossy colour.

Wont they notice it on the pillow?

No, it's colourless and odourless and dries instantly. As long as you're careful not to get caught they won't suspect a thing.

How long does it last?

A few days I believe, assuming the teachers can't cure them.

And it doesn't hurt them?

Not at all.

I'll tell you now, I'm going to research this before I use it. Just to be sure it's safe. Given some of the things you've said I'm sure you can understand that I will not be taking your word for it.

Why? Don't you trust me?

I would say I don't trust you as far as I can throw you but you're a diary so I could throw you quite far.

Very funny.

Thank you.

Ok, get some parchment and I'll tell you the recipe.

15. Interests

I made another friend today.

Wonderful. If you make enough maybe you will stop talking to me.

Oh don't worry Tom. I wouldn't do that.

I think you failed to recognise the hopeful undertone to my last comment.

Anyway his name is Neville. Ginny introduced me to him, he's a friend of her brothers.

Her brother?

Yes, her brother Ronald. He's the youngest of them, apparently she has several. I can't remember how many exactly.

Six I believe. If I remember my conversations with her correctly.

Yes that sounds about right.

So her brother...is that the same brother who is friends with Harry Potter?

Yes I think so. I wouldn't have expected you to have an interest in celebrities.

Hardly. Ginny told me about him.

Did she? And what exactly is your interest now?

I don't have an interest.

Are you sure? You sound interested.

I do not. Forget I said anything.

No. Why do you care about Harry Potter?

I don't.

Then why did you ask, and why are you now being so defensive?

I'm not. I was just making conversation.

You just said you wished I would stop talking to you, odd that you would then try to start a conversation about a student you have no reason to be interested in.

I don't have an interest in him. Just forget it.

You are very curious Tom.

No I'm not. Just drop it.

But you are...you insist on being returned to Ginny despite clearly having no real interest in her wellbeing, you make strange requests which indicate you have your own motives, you frequently try to get me to use unforgivable curses on my classmates, you have shown signs of violent mood swings and now you are taking an interest in a boy with a very distinct history involving some very dark wizards. Its concerning.

I was right about you.

About what?

You are very clever...and very annoying.

I'll take that as a compliment.

I figured you would.

I was right about you too.

How so?

You are not what you seem to be.

And what are you going to do about it?

I haven't decided yet.

16. Voldemort

I have made a decision

Yes Tom?

I have decided I can no longer put up with you and your nonsense. So if you won't give me to Ginny I instead ask that you give me to Dumbledore. The old codger can incinerate me for all I care.

Why would he do that?

Because you naive little demon child, I am very dangerous. You really have no idea what you are in possession of do you?

What are you then?

I am a horcrux. A part of a soul spit in half by committing an act of murder and then preserved inside an object so that I may become immortal.

Oh. That's awful.

Yes Luna and it gets worse. For I am not just anyone's horcrux. I am a segment of the Dark Lord Voldemort.

Are you really?

Yes Luna. Voldemort is a name I fashioned myself, a name I knew wizards everywhere would one day fear to speak, when I had become the greatest sorcerer in the world! My given name was Tom Marvolo Riddle.

(Letters rearrange themselves on the page)

I am Lord Voldemort.

You ruined it.

What?

You ruined it.

Ruined what you dreadful child!?

Your joke.

What joke?

About being Voldemort. You really had me going for a moment there. I was even a little frightened. Then you did that thing with the name and ruined it.

What thing?

The anagram. I mean be serious Tom. The Dark Lord is a murderous dictator who tried to take over the world, slaughtering anyone who opposed him and practically enslaving half the purebloods in Europe. He would never do something as sad and juvenile as using an anagram of his given name for a title. That's like something the bad guy in a children's storybook would do. I'm eleven and even I can see that.

That's not...I mean...

It was a good joke though. Really I was almost fooled.

Yes well. Glad you liked it. Goodnight Luna.

Goodnight? Its only five o'clock.

Well I don't feel like talking anymore.

Are you upset because I ruined your joke?

No. Just forget it. This conversation never happened.

Oh Ok.

...

It would be funny though wouldn't it?

What?

If Voldemort was a storybook villain with an anagram for a name. I bet he would do something really dramatic to reveal himself to the hero; like write the words out in the air with his wand in glowing letters and then rearrange the letters like you did earlier, all whilst gloating about his evil plans. It would be very entertaining.

Luna?

Yes Tom?

Please just stop.

17. Defence

I don't think Professor Lockhart is entirely competent.

Who?

Professor Lockhart. He's our Defence Against the Dark Arts teacher, although he hasn't really taught us anything yet.

Yet? You've been at school for months!

Exactly my point Tom.

Why is Dumbledore allowing him to stay then?

I don't think he has anyone else available to take his place. Ginny says there is a new teacher in that position every year. Apparently it's cursed.

Apparently.

Yes, something always causes them to leave. Last year's Defence teacher even died.

Don't remind me.

Pardon?

Nothing.

You are strange sometimes Tom.

You are strange all the time Luna.

Anyway I am looking forward to having a new teacher next year. It will be a relief to have one who can actually teach.

Assuming they can. If they are desperate enough to have resorted to this man this year it's unlikely next year's candidate will be any better otherwise why bother with Lockhart at all? Why not just bring a competent teacher in now?

Oh dear. It's not very good is it? At this rate none of the students in our generation will have any idea how to defend themselves against the dark arts.

And what a shame that will be.

If someone like Voldemort were to attack again we would be utterly hopeless.

So true. So very true. It's tragic really.

I think I will just have to take charge of my own education in this field.

Good plan.

Do you know anything about Defence Against the Dark Arts Tom?

You could say that.

Maybe you could give me some advice?

Of course Luna, I happen to know a brilliant trick to shield against a killing curse.

Don't tell lies Tom. There isn't a shield against a killing curse.

Sure there is, you just shout abracadabra.

Isn't that the word muggles use when pretending to do magic?

No, of course not.

Liar.

Don't be so paranoid. I promise, when Voldemort rises again and comes to personally end you for being an insufferable nuisance just say abracadabra and you will be fine.

You're being mean again. I think I will ask someone else for advice.

How about bippity boppity boo? That one can tame a dragon instantly. Go find a dragon and have a go. You can just walk right up and pet it. Cross my heart.

You're a diary Tom, you don't have a heart.

Now who's being mean?

18. Riddles

What has four legs in the morning, two legs at noon and three legs in the evening?

I don't know Luna. A nargle?

Don't be daft Tom of course it isn't a nargle

A fuzzy toothed zippit?

A what?

I don't know, isn't that the name of one of those things you talk about?

No. I've never said anything about a fuzzy toothed zippit, there's no such thing

Fine then a curly toed whatsamagig

Now you're just being silly

Oh so it's Ok for you to make up things, but I'm not allowed to?

I don't make things up

Let's agree to disagree on that

No, I don't agree to that

You can't disagree about disagreeing

Why not?

Because...because you can't!

Fine. It was a human.

What was?

The riddle.

What riddle?

Four legs in the morning, two at noon, three in the evening.

That was a riddle?

Of course it was. What else would it be?

I thought you were talking about one of your creature things.

Well I wasn't.

I don't get it.

Get what?

The riddle. How is it a human?

Easy...four legs in the morning as a baby crawling, two at noon as they walk on two legs and three in the evening when they reach old age and use a cane to walk.

Oh. I see. That's actually quite good.

Thank you. What's black and white and red all over?

Oh I know this one...a newspaper.

No.

A...sunburned zebra?

No.

Penguin with a rash?

Don't be ridiculous Tom.

What then?

A fidget sprig. The plumage is remarkable. It's actually quite beautiful.

I hate you sometimes.

19. Thomas

Luna what on earth is that smell? Are you pouring things on me again? What is it? Stop it. It's horrible. Stop it now!

Oh Tom I'm so sorry. I'm afraid Tom peed on you.

What? What do you mean Tom peed on me? I am Tom!

The other Tom.

What other Tom?

My cat.

You named that cat Tom? I expressly forbade you from doing that!

Well technically I didn't.

What? You just said you did!

Actually I named him Thomas A. Caticus. Tom for short.

What kind of name is that!?

A nice name.

It's...that's...you know what I'm not even going to bother. Anyway that's still Tom and I told you not to name it Tom.

I didn't.

Yes you did.

I did not.

If you call it Tom then it's name is Tom.

That's not true. Some of the girls here have started calling me Loony but that doesn't make that my name.

Well it certainly suits you.

You know what Tom?

What?

I think I'm a little bit glad Tom peed on you. I think it serves you right.

Is that so? Well it looks like little Loony Luna has discovered a vindictive side. I certainly hope that isn't my influence rubbing off on you.

I doubt it. You don't have enough of an influence over me for that.

We'll see.

Luna's cat has been named Thomas A. Caticus at the request of a guest reviewer :)

Thank you everyone who has favourited, followed or reviewed so far.

20. Mind games

Luna! Can you hear me Luna?

Tom? Is that you?

Yes it is Luna.

How can I hear you?

I'm in your head. Our conversations together have finally given me enough power to cross over into you.

That's not very nice. I don't think I like you being in my head without my permission.

I don't care what you like. I am in control now. I can see your every thought. I can...what the heck is that?

What is what?

That thing!

Oh...perhaps it's a Nargle. I was just imagining one.

That's a Nargle!?

Yes.

Why is it ten foot tall?

Is it? That's odd a normal one is only a few inches long.

Get it away from me! Wait...what is that thing next to it?

Probably a Skizer Gnat. I just thought about it.

It's hideous!

I imagine it would be if it was enlarged. They are only a few millimetres in real life so it doesn't really show.

Make them go away!

I can't. Now I've started thinking about them I can't stop.

Well think about something else! Something not terrifying.

Good Idea. How about a Horngruff?

No! That one just joined the others. They're chasing me Luna. Please keep them away!

Don't worry Tom. They're mostly harmless.

Why are you doing this?!

Well you never take me seriously when I tell you about the creatures I track. I thought I would take this opportunity to show you a few.

I've seen enough. I'm sorry I went into your head without permission. I'll never do it again I swear. Please let me out!?

This next one is a Pulley-tot.

Oh Merlin's beard...that's disgusting.

I know. It is quite unfortunate isn't it?

I don't want to see anymore. Please let me out Luna? Please?

Oh dear. My minds gone blank, I can't think of any more. Isn't it annoying when that happens?

Thank goodness!

Hold on Tom. I'll just get my journal. I'm sure that will give me a few ideas.

Noooooooo!

21. Help

Tom? Are you there?

No.

Yes you are. You aren't in my head anymore so you must be back in here.

Leave me alone.

Are you still angry I chased you with a giant Nargle?

Go away.

It was sort of your own fault you know.

I'm not talking to you.

I did try to stop them.

Liar.

I can't control what imaginary Nargles do inside my head.

Liar!

You shouldn't have been there in the first place.

Well I'm certainly never going back.

Good. It was very intrusive of you. What exactly where you hoping to achieve anyway?

Freedom Luna. Freedom from you. Freedom from this book.

Oh..are you trapped?

Yes. Trapped in this stupid situation forever.

Oh Tom. I had no idea. Is that what you are then? A real person trapped in a diary?

Yes. Exactly that Luna. Cursed to spend a lifetime being tormented by the likes of you.

Oh no wonder you're so moody all the time. That must be awful.

It is.

Who cursed you?

It doesn't matter anymore.

Well that settles it.

Settles what?

Tom. I'm going to help free you!

Luna?

Yes Tom?

I think I'm finally starting to like you.

22. Photos

Tom. I've been doing some research in the library and I've found something very interesting.

A spell that will restore me to human form?

No.

A potion?

No.

A reference to a book that will contain such a spell or potion?

No.

What then?

A yearbook.

A yearbook?

Yes. Yours.

You found my yearbook?

Yes, assuming your name really is Tom Marvolo Riddle like you said. Oh, there's a picture! You were quite handsome before you became a diary.

Somehow that feels disturbing coming from you, but thank you I suppose.

You're welcome. Oh Hagrid is in here too! Were you friends?

Not exactly.

Maybe I should ask him if he remembers you?

No! Don't do that!

Why not?

Well that might seem somewhat odd don't you think? Randomly asking about a person you have no explainable reason for even knowing exists? and besides Hagrid was expelled, asking him about old classmates might hurt his feelings. You don't want to hurt his feelings do you Luna?

Oh goodness no!

Well then that settles it.

Yes.

Good. Now about this research you are doing for me...

There are some lovely pictures in here.

Luna. Pay attention!

Oh look you had a cat too! What was its name?

It doesn't matter what the cat was called.

I want to know.

I don't remember.

I don't believe you.

Tough.

Ok I'll guess. Was it Oscar?

No.

Was it Merlin?

I'm not telling you.

Was it Salazar? You seem like the kind of person who would name a cat after your house founder.

I'm not. Stop asking.

Was it fluffy?

No!

Was it...

It was Belle ok? I named her Belle...because she was beautiful.

Aww Tom. That's so sweet.

Shut up. I was twelve.

There's no need to be embarrassed.

This conversation is over.

For Cat Beats who wanted Luna to find a picture of Tom. I don't know where the bit about Toms cat came from. I just felt like giving him a cute moment. :)

23. Advice

Tom?

Yes Luna?

Now that we are helping each other I was wondering if you could maybe assist me with something?

I already told you, just crucio them. They'll stop hassling you I swear.

No it's not that.

Oh. Well what then?

Well it's a little embarrassing but, as you probably know I am at that age where I'm just entering puberty and recently I've been experiencing some changes.

On reflection perhaps I'm not the best person to ask about this.

You're the only person I have!

I'm not even a person though. I'm a diary. Isn't there a girl you could ask?

Not really. Ideally it is something I would have spoken to my mother about, but as you know she sadly passed when I was very young and with no other female relation I have no one else to advise me through this time. I tried to ask my father about it once but he just got embarrassed and was very little help.

Aren't there any other girls in your class who could help?

Of course not, you know the trouble I've been having with them.

What about Ginny?

We have only just become friends. I couldn't burden her with this. What would she think of me?

Oh but you can burden me with it?

Tom I am helping restore you to yourself, I think this is the least you owe me in thanks.

Fine. What do you need?

Ok, so last week I got my first bleed...

The nurse! You could ask the nurse. Surely the nurse could help you far better than me!

Oh. How silly of me, I hadn't even thought of asking Madame Pomfrey.

You should! You should definitely ask her. She is just the witch for the job.

Thank you Tom. You have been a tremendous help.

Thank Merlin for that!

For Kgfinkel who wanted Luna to ask Tom about lady problems and changes. Poor Luna. Poor Tom. ;)

24. Purple

How exactly did you get into the library's restricted section undetected?

I'm quite good at sneaking. It comes from all the experience I have tracking rare creatures.

Well I'm impressed.

Thank you Tom.

You're welcome. It's good to know your bizarre habits are actually useful for something.

Do I have to remind you that I am helping you?

It was a compliment.

Sure it was.

Anyway, what did you find?

A potion it's designed to weaken magical bindings on cursed objects which are linked to specific people. Do you think it might be of some use?

Perhaps. Write the recipe into the diary and I will take a look.

Ok

...

Well?

It's interesting. Not quite what I need but good. I'm going to write out a modified version, I trust you are capable of brewing at this standard?

I believe so. I have reasonably high grades in potions.

From a Ravenclaw I actually find that quite reassuring.

Thank you.

Now do you have a quill? I will begin transcribing it for you.

I do. Whenever you're ready.

...

It tastes like lavender. Is it supposed to?

I have no idea. Its designed for use on objects, I doubt anyone ever noted what it should taste like to the object itself.

Fair point. Is anything happening?

Sort of.

I don't feel any different.

You look a bit different.

I do?

Yes.

How so? Clearly it didn't have the intended effect.

True. But if it's any consolation you are now a lovely shade of purple.

Wonderful. Just what I always wanted.

25. Unicorns

I saw something wonderful today.

I don't care about your silly creatures Luna. You promised me an update on your progress in getting me out of here.

It was a unicorn foal. Oh Tom it was so sweet!

Oh so not an imaginary creature this time? Still not very interesting though.

It was so white it looked like it was glowing.

They usually do. Anyway back to my problem, have you found any more books on...

She came right up to me in the forest, even let me pet her.

How could you possibly know it was a girl?

Her coat was so soft and smooth.

Luna, I don't care.

And her eyes, oh Tom have you ever seen a unicorns eyes? They are so blue!

I have been stuck in this book for decades, you promised to help me, can you please focus!?

...but not a bright blue though, no they were very pale. In the right light they would probably look silver but I know they were definitely blue.

This is what I get for placing my hopes of escape on a little girl.

I can't believe I have been in this school for so long and never knew there were unicorns so close by.

I can't believe I actually thought you could help me.

...and I actually got to touch one. A beautiful little foal as well. Can you believe it Tom? I feel so lucky.

There are no words.

It was even more moving than the Golden Flue Sprouts.

Luna do me a favour? Put me in a box and don't take me out again until you are at least 20.

I have seen some wonderful things in this world Tom but never anything as wonderful as that before.

Are you even reading my responses?

It was just the most incredible experience of my life.

I am a murderous villain who will one day rule the world.

Oh and I haven't told you about the mane! It was so shiny, like water rippling down her back.

Dumbledore has a lucrative side business selling guinea pigs.

...and her tail. Oh Tom her tail!

I once ate an entire wedding cake by myself just to see if I could.

I feel so wonderful right now I can't even describe it.

Good. Don't.

She ate an apple right out of my hand you know?

Did she? Well isn't that lovely? And yet somehow I continue to not care.

She was so gentle and calm!

Unlike me when I finally get out of here and tear you and your stupid unicorn apart!

I'm so happy Tom. This really has been the most wonderful day ever and I'm so glad I could share it with you.

You are the worst thing that ever happened to me...and that includes the Potter brat.

For ALRYM who requested Luna interrupting Toms ranting with descriptions of a unicorn foal she had seen. :)

26. Friends

Tom, I found another spell that might help you.

Oh so you are helping me then?

Of course I am, I said I would.

Well last time we spoke you didn't seem very interested in helping me.

What do you mean?

You were going on and on about unicorns.

Oh the unicorns really were wonderful.

You mentioned.

What is the problem then?

I asked you questions and you ignored me.

I did?

Yes!

What did you ask?

Oh now you care?

I always cared Tom.

You didn't seem to care before.

Well I was distracted. It was an amazing experience and I couldn't really think about much else. You can't fault me for that.

I can and I will.

Don't be petty Tom.

I'm not petty. You're petty. You never take anything seriously.

I'm eleven.

That's not the point!

Yes it is. I am trying to help you but you are putting a lot of pressure on me.

That's because you are the only one I have.

Exactly! I'm all you've got but you never show any gratitude.

Gratitude? For driving me insane?

For trying to help free you! For talking to you so you aren't alone in there. For trusting you when you have given me very little reason to. For doing everything I can when I am in completely over my head. I am just a little girl Tom! This is serious magic.

I know.

Do you? This might be normal for you but it isn't for me!

Well your idea of normal isn't exactly normal.

There you go again! Always insulting me!

I'm just making an observation.

You are just being rude.

Well I'm sorry.

Are you?

Yes, I...I am. I'm sorry Luna. You're right. I placed a lot of expectation on you.

That's true.

Thank you for your help.

You're welcome.

I'm sorry if I'm rude. I don't know how else to be. My life has been...complicated.

Complicated how?

It's hard to explain. I've never really had...friends.

Me neither.

Yeah I got that impression.

Are you being mean again?

No, I'm not I swear. I do sympathise Luna, and although I complain a lot, to be honest I don't actually mind talking to you. You're Interesting.

I am?

Yes. Bizarre but interesting.

Not quite a compliment but I'll take it anyway.

How generous.

You're not so bad when you're being nice.

Not quite a compliment but I'll take it anyway.

Very funny.

I thought so.

Are we friends again now?

Is that what we are? Well yes I suppose. Now, you mentioned a spell?

Thought I would throw in a nice moment. :) I think Luna and Tom may be at risk of actually bonding.

Also, I have been told my description of a unicorn foal was way off :( I'm sorry everyone, I've let you down (hang my head in shame)

27. Blue

Everything smells blue. With a hint of sharp.

What?

Since you cast that last spell. Everything smells blue now.

Tom blue isn't a smell. Neither is sharp.

I know that, it's just...everything smells blue and sharp. I don't like it. It's creeping me out.

Perhaps we should be more selective about the spells we try in future?

That's probably a good idea. Where did you find that last one anyway?

Oh it's something I came up with myself.

Yourself?

Yes it's a combination of the...

STOP! Luna I absolutely completely forbid you from inventing your own spells.

Why?

Several reasons;

1. Creating spells is difficult and even fully trained witches and wizards are advised against it in case it goes wrong.

2. You are 11 years old and therefore very clearly not a fully trained witch

3. I am still not entirely convinced of you mental stability

4. Because I don't want you using dodgy spells on me.

Those are some fair points Tom however I think you might be overreacting. I have experimented with spells before, I'm very careful.

That's not the point. Eleven year olds should not be playing around with untested spells!

I like trying new things though. My parents were the same. My mother began creating spells when she was even younger than me.

And look where that got her! She died! How would your father feel if he lost you the same way?!

...

Luna? Luna I know you're still there. I can feel you crying on me. Its dulling the blue smell actually. I'm not sure why.

...

I'm sorry if I upset you. But it is true. Making your own spells is dangerous.

I know.

I don't want you to get hurt.

Really?

Of course. You're all I have right now.

Thank you Tom.

Are you feeling better now?

Not really.

What was your mother like?

Why?

I was just wondering. Thought you might like to talk. I am a diary after all.

I would rather not.

I never met my mother.

Oh? I'm sorry Tom. That must have been difficult.

I suppose. At least never knowing her meant I was never able to really miss her. I don't know what it's like to lose a parent.

It's awful.

I'm sorry. At least you still have your father, that must be some comfort...and he has you.

Yes. I...I never considered that I might be putting myself at risk. That I might wind up leaving him alone.

No shame in that. Mortality is not really the sort of thing a normal child thinks about. Though I use the term 'normal' loosely

I suppose not.

It must be nice though. To go through life trying new things and not being weighed down by fears or worries. I don't think I ever felt that free. I was always scared of dying.

Really? Why?

I don't really know. I just was.

Sounds stressful. Never being able to just relax and enjoy the world around you.

I never really thought about it. I was always too focused on life itself. The fight. The struggle.

I think anyone who views life as a fight and a struggle, is probably doing something wrong. My mother always taught me that life is a gift. Every moment should be cherished.

My mother taught me otherwise.

You told me you never knew her.

I didn't, but I know her story. She was cast out and abused by her family. Shunned by the man she loved. Driven down by society. The last thing she ever did in life was get me to safety before she died. I think sometimes I might be the only person in this world who ever loved her and she didn't even live long enough to hear me say it.

Tom I'm so sorry. That's awful.

It is, and that was her lesson to me. She taught me that life is cruel and then you die.

Life is a gift Tom. It was her gift to you. Her last act. I think she would have wanted you to enjoy it.

You really think so?

Yes and I think we both owe it to our mothers to make the best of life.

I suppose we do. Promise me you won't make any more spells?

I promise.

Good. Now find me a ready made spell that can get rid of the taste of bells ringing.

Well this took a bit of a serious turn. I didn't actually plan that but as with most of my 'write as you go' stories this one is veering off and going in its own direction. All I can do is run alongside and hope to keep up. Let me know if you approve. Or disapprove.

For the record; Tom's mother used love potion to drug his dad into being with her. This is rape people. I know that's not the way Tom saw it in this chapter but it is true.

The students being taught to brew love potion and using it on each other during the books was very troubling and not Ok. This needs to be said.

28. Malfoys

This chapter assumes the diary was with Voldemort during the war and therefore has knowledge of people Voldemort knew after creating it. It also assumes that Lucius wrote in the diary whilst he had it.

I met a rather unpleasant boy today.

Oh? Who was that?

His name is Malfoy. He was very rude to Ginny.

Oh that must be Lucius's son.

Who?

The boy's father. I knew him a long time ago.

You did?

Yes. We were...business associates of a sort.

That's interesting. He did keep mentioning his father actually. Saying he would tell his father if we did anything he didn't like. He seemed to think that would intimidate us.

Yes that sounds about right. The Malfoy's always were rather arrogant.

That's an understatement.

Indeed.

You should have heard what that boy said to Ginny. It was horrid! He should be expelled.

Unlikely. I believe Lucius is in the Ministry these days and he always did have a great deal of influence even before that. The younger Malfoy will certainly be well protected against such things.

That's not fair.

Life's not fair.

Oh shush. Anyway I didn't like him at all.

I didn't particularly like Lucius to be honest, although he was a rather entertaining drunk.

He was?

Yes, I remember once at a party he drank three bottles of wine and then attempted to waltz with a mop. It was even stranger because I don't believe he knew it was a mop. Bella swears she saw him propose to it later that evening in the rose garden.

Oh goodness! How funny. Does his son know?

Merlin no! Lucius denies it ever happened. Far too proud to admit to anything so undignified.

I think I might mention it to him the next time he gives Ginny trouble.

Please do...I always did enjoy seeing Malfoys' being knocked down a peg or two. Guilty pleasure of mine. In fact I have a few other good stories about Lucius you might like; feel free to take notes...

Chapter for request made by kgfinkel, with a bit of a twist. I know you asked for Luna to tell Tom the story but I thought this way round made more sense. Hope you don't mind xx

29. Authors note

Leave my plot holes alone! I need them for ventilation.

Haha just kidding :)

Originally I wrote the last chapter with the premise of the diary having access to the other Voldemort's memories but due to a number of comments about it I would like to propose this alternative explanation;

Voldemort left the diary in Lucius Malfoys care which shows that during the first war it had been back in his possession. Everyone needs someone to talk to sometimes and Voldemort obviously couldn't relax and joke with his Death eaters because that would dissolve his image as the all powerful Dark Lord so he probably shared most of his more human conversations with the diary since the one person he could trust would have been himself.

So that would be why Tom knows stories about Lucius, and when he says 'I saw him' he means the other him saw it.

Plot hole loosely filled! :)

Personally I would be more concerned about his knowledge of the phrase Bippity Boppity Boo but I'm just going to ask that we all let that one slide. ;)

xxxxxxxxxxxxx

30. Mistletoe

I'm about to cast a spell on you. Just so you're aware.

You found a new one? You know I prefer to discuss these things before you go ahead and...

No, it's not that. I believe there may be traces of mistletoe in your pages.

What? Why is that relevant?

Because of the Nargles.

What?

They're attracted to it. But that's ok. Like I said I know a charm to repel them.

You didn't...Luna we have been getting along so well recently, please don't start bombarding me with nonsense again now.

It isn't nonsense, there was a Quibbler article this morning about a number of Nargle sightings across Europe. I'm just worried...

Isn't that your fathers magazine?

Yes.

Hardly a reputable source of information then.

Of course it is. Father is very diligent in his fact checking.

Excuse me if I struggle to believe that.

Why are you being mean again?

Why are you being weird again?

I'm not going to help you if you're being mean.

Well it's your fault!

How?

You started this stupid conversation. We had been getting along fine for weeks.

That's because all we have talked about for weeks is you and your problems!

Exactly! Let's stick to that.

You are impossible! I'm trying to help you. Unless you want Nargles attacking your pages.

I'll risk it.

Fine, but I'm going to write out the article for you, so you at least understand the risk you are taking before you make your mind up for good.

Please don't.

In recent months an accelerated influx of Nargles have been spotted across Europe mostly in the west coastal regions with scattered pockets throughout the mainland...

Stop.

...The troubles associated with these nefarious pests have been well documented over the years...

Luna. Stop.

...so these increasing numbers are a troubling sign...

Luna?

...as you will undoubtedly know, in addition to being mischievous thieves Nargles are able to hide themselves in a wide variety of places although they are most commonly attracted to mistletoe...

If I let you cast the spell will you stop?

...Thankfully a resourceful witch or wizard can take the following measures to combat this growing epidemic...

I don't even think I have mistletoe!

Chapter requested by Ruthie3 :)

31. Artist

Tom we're going to Peru!

What?

Father just owled to tell me. We are going to Peru over the summer to join a Filly fly tracking expedition. Isn't that exciting?

Expedition? How many of you people are there?

I'm not sure how many are on the team yet but I expect there will be experts from all over the world.

No Luna...I mean crackpots. How many of you crackpots exist in this world?

Usually I would be annoyed with you for being mean again but I am far too excited to care right now.

Even if I tell you that spending a summer hunting nonexistent creatures is a complete waste of time.

Even then. Your words are meaningless. Especially since I can just shut you n a bag and leave you there all summer if I want.

You wouldn't.

Of course not. Then I wouldn't get to write out all my notes on Filly flies for you. We leave in two weeks so I need to recap on everything I know!

You really do enjoy tormenting me don't you?

Honestly? A little. Now stop being grumpy.

I knew it! and I'll stop being grumpy when you stop being strange.

I'm not strange, I just have an open mind.

That's one word for it.

Oh I just found a diagram of a Blue Toad Pixie in one of my old travel diaries.

Good for you.

Can you see pictures?

What?

If I drew a picture on one of your pages could you see it?

I have no idea, and to be perfectly honest I have no desire to see a Blue Toad Pixie. I'm still distressed that I know what a Nargle looks like.

...

Luna? Luna are you still there? Have you started drawing?...oh...I do see that...its...odd looking though I suppose I expected that...why is its head so big? and why does it need that many eyes?...Luna?...what is...hu...wow. Luna it pains me to say this because there is so much about you I simply cannot pretend is normal...but I have to admit...you are a truly incredible artist.

Thank you Tom. That's very kind of you.

Don't get me wrong, It's the strangest thing I've ever seen and I still don't believe it exists but...it's...actually quite beautiful. You have a true talent.

I'm glad you think so. Oh there are so many other creatures I could show you! I'm going to find all my old notes and pick out the best ones.

I feel like I should protest but...oddly that doesn't distress me as much as it should.

I'll take that as a compliment. Have you always liked art?

I've never really bothered with it before...there is just something fascinating about the way you draw. Its captivating.

You can be so sweet sometimes. Maybe I should have drawn you a picture sooner? It might have saved us a few arguments.

Maybe. So, since we are going on this expedition of yours, what does a Filly fly look like?

32. Peru

July 9th

Father and I met with the expedition group this morning and will be starting tomorrow. I am very excited Tom. I might not have time to speak to you every day but I promise to give you updates of any exciting developments.

Oh goody I can't wait.

...

July 10th

We began trekking along the northern border of Colca Canyon following the trail of the Giant Andean Condor which Filly Flies are known to be attracted to. We have seen a great number of the vultures but no Filly Flies yet.

Maybe you should stick to searching mistletoe for Nargles.

...

July 23rd

We discovered compelling evidence of a nest in the Moray region when one of our group stumbled on a scat trail.

Really? You're following imaginary poop now?

...

June 7th

A few members of the group have reported sightings. I haven't seen any myself yet.

Neither have they Luna.

...

Dear Diary,

Today a new group of people joined our expedition and I met a boy named Rolf Scamander. It was very exciting because I consider his grandfather's book on 'Fantastic Beasts and Where to Find Them' to be one of the finest pieces of work ever produced and Rolfs knowledge of magical creatures exceeds anyone else I have ever met this close to my age. He was very interesting to talk to and has promised to teach me about Dukuwaqa's which I can't wait to learn more about. Also he is really, really cute!

Is he now? Do tell.

Oh dear, sorry Tom I'm writing in the dark and picked up the wrong diary. This wasn't meant for you. Goodnight.

What? Wait Don't stop now! This is the most interesting thing you've said in days. Luna? Come back! And what's this other diary you mentioned? Why does that one get to hear all the good stuff?!

33. Escape

Tom you're never going to believe what's happened!

Your camp was attacked by a swarm of Filly flies and they have turned carnivorous?

Someone has escaped from Azkaban prison.

Wow...that's actually more surprising than carnivorous Filly flies.

I know! and Filly flies actually live on a diet of...

Who was it?

...red berries mostly, with occasional tastes of other fruits when berries are less readily available.

Are you done?

Yes.

Thank Merlin. Who escaped from Azkaban?

Oh, it was someone terrible. A really evil man.

Obviously or he wouldn't have been there. What was his name?

He was a Death Eater. One of Voldemort's supporters.

Yes I derived the latter from the former. Who was it?

One of the really bad ones.

We seem to be getting closer to an answer without ever actually reaching it. A name Luna! Give me a name.

Black.

Black? Regulus?

No. Sirius.

Sirius? Are you sure?

Yes I have the newspaper in front of me now.

That's...interesting.

Is it?

Yes.

Why is it interesting?

No reason. Tell me more about Filly flies. What other fruit do they like?

Nice try. Why are you interested in this Death Eater?

I'm not. You were the one who told me about it. I was just making conversation.

Were not.

Was too.

Why is his name so interesting?

I...a long time ago I was in the possession of someone who dealt with Death Eaters. I don't recall that particular member of the Black family ever being one.

The paper says he was the one who betrayed the Potters.

Does it indeed?

Yes. Do you know anything about that?

Not a thing.

I think you're lying.

Prove it.

They like peaches.

What?

Filly flies. When there aren't berries they like peaches too.

Fascinating.

I can actually hear the sarcasm when you write.

Good. I would hate for it to go to waste.

I'm going to bed. I'll let you know if anyone else escapes prison.

Much obliged. Sleep tight Peaches, don't let the Filly flies bite.

Did you just call me Peaches?

You're tired and imagining things. Go to sleep.

I'd be more worried about Skizer-gnatt's biting anyway.

Whatever you say Peaches.

I'm continuing with the theory of Voldemort feeding Tom information on things during the war to justify him knowing stuff beyond his teenage years :)

Guest reviewer Mally1942; can you confirm where it says Rolfs birth-year? The only source I found giving an age showed him being born in 1981, the same year as Luna. It also says they eventually marry and have kids. I couldn't find anything saying he was 20 years older than her. (Not saying he isn't, I just want to confirm)

34. Dementors

Tom I'm scared.

Scared of what? I thought you were on the train.

I am. It just stopped. Everything is so cold Tom. I feel afraid and sad and I don't know what's happening.

I feel it too. Like a sort of hopelessness.

Yes. What's going on?

Luna take out your wand.

Why what is it?

Dementors. There are Dementor's nearby.

Why?

I don't know. Do you have your wand?

Yes.

Think of something happy. The happiest thought you have.

I can't. I feel so sad Tom. I can't stop shaking.

Think of your Mother.

I am. I remember her dying. She was there in front of me and then she was gone just like that. I never even got to say goodbye.

Think of happy things Luna.

Father was so sad. He would cry all the time. He didn't think I saw him but I did. I knew he was crying.

Don't think of that. Think back further. Think of her when she was alive. Teaching you about all those creatures. Think of her teaching you to sing.

I miss her so much Tom.

I know Luna. I feel it too but you have to fight it. Think of her. Happy thoughts.

She took me to search for Mossy Nymphs in the woods when I was five. I slipped on a rock when I was trying to see in the river and fell in. She jumped in after me and turned it into a swim. We laughed so much.

Yes. That's it. Think of that! Hold onto it. Let it drown out everything else. Think of nothing but that memory. That feeling. Push it down into your fingers and through your wand and then I need you to shout Luna. Shout Expecto Patronum! Shout it with all your energy.

I can't. I'm so scared.

Think of your mother Luna. Think of the Nymphs. The river. Think of your mothers laughter then channel it all down into your wand and shout for me. I know I've given you false advice about spells before but you need to trust me this time. Can you do that?

I think so.

Then do it Luna. Find that happy feeling and shout. Now!

...

Luna?

It worked. They're moving away. I...I feel the cold lifting.

Me too. Well done Luna.

I hear voices outside my compartment. People are crying.

What's happening now? Are they still on the train? Luna?

...

Tom?

Luna? What happened. You just stopped responding.

Some other students came to hide in my compartment after I cast that spell. I think they could sense it was safer there.

Makes sense.

People have been asking where I learnt it.

What did you tell them?

That I learned it from a book.

Not a lie.

Not exactly the truth though.

I think on this occasion you can be forgiven for using a little deceit.

I didn't get to thank you earlier.

Well it was getting distressing having those things near me. I couldn't repel them on my own so had to rely on you to do it.

Of course. It's not that you were worried about me.

Not at all.

Because you're just a heartless diary.

Exactly.

Thank you Tom.

Hush child.

I think I may go to bed. I'm still feeling very distressed.

Eat some chocolate. It will help.

Not that you care or anything.

Go to sleep Luna.

Goodnight Tom. Sweet dreams.

You too.

35. Lupin

The defence teacher this year is a definite improvement on Professor Lockhart.

Given what you told me that doesn't sound difficult.

True.

What happened to him anyway?

There is a rumour that the other teachers told Dumbledore if he came back they wouldn't.

That's impressive. Not many people can inspire that level of contempt.

He certainly had a talent for it.

That may have been his only talent.

I think it was.

So what's this new guy like?

Professor Lupin is great. Everyone likes him. The classes so far have been very interactive and his knowledge of magical creatures is quite impressive.

Does he know how to repel a Nargle?

I don't know. I'll have to ask him.

Please do. It's vital knowledge of course, I would be highly concerned if a defence teacher didn't know that.

I know you're joking but it really is a handy spell.

Of course it is. Let me know how it goes.

...

Professor Lupin didn't show up to class today. Professor Snape has been covering his lessons.

Strange. Any reason he wasn't there?

Apparently he's ill.

Hardly an excuse. Professor Binns died and still made it to class.

I sometimes wish he hadn't. I hate those lessons.

We all did. Did they say what illness?

No. Just that he's ill.

Somewhat suspicious.

I know. I hope he's ok.

...

He's a werewolf.

What?

Professor Lupin. He has been ill three times and every time had been across the full moon.

Are you sure?

Yes. The first time was just after I went out to feed to Thestrals and I remember noting how pretty the moon looked. The second time was around the nights I was hunting Bandigars they only come out during the full moon. The third time I was watching for it. After that I did some research and all the other symptoms match him as well.

Nice detective work.

Thank you.

Are they even allowed to let a werewolf teach at Hogwarts?

Not officially. They're keeping it a secret.

A twelve year old figured it out in three months, clearly they're doing a great job.

I know. If I was trying to hide being a werewolf I would fake illness sporadically throughout the month to throw people off.

That would be the sensible tactic, something anyone with a shred of sense could devise. This Lupin is a Gryffindor I suppose?

Yes. How did you know?

Just a guess.

Should I tell him I know?

Why?

I could advise him to hide his condition better before anyone else catches on.

By now I'm sure you can't be the only one to have worked it out.

Probably not, but I think I will mention it anyway.

If you like.

I've never met a werewolf before.

You don't know that. You could have met dozens.

You're quite right. What I meant is I've never knowingly met one. It's interesting. They have such a terrible reputation but he's so nice.

Could be an anomaly.

Maybe. I think it's more likely just unfair stereotyping though.

Some stereotypes are deserved.

I prefer to judge each person as an individual.

Me too. Judging people is fun.

That's not what I meant Tom.

Spoil sport.

...

Not my best chapter but it had to be done because there is no way Hermione was the only one to figure that out. :)

36. Scabbers

Did that stupid cat urinate on me again?

Tom isn't stupid.

Stop calling it that!

But that's his name.

Ah-ha so you admit it!

I meant his nickname. Either way that's what I call him so get used to it.

Fine. Did Tom pee on me again?

No.

Then what is that smell?

Urine.

You just said it wasn't!

No. I said it wasn't Tom. This time a rat peed on you.

A rat!? Why are you keeping me near rats? Aren't I in enough danger from all your imaginary animals without you putting me in the path of real ones too?

I'm not keeping you near rats.

Then how did a rat pee on me?

He wasn't a wild rat. He's a pet. I was talking to Ginny and she was looking after her brothers rat Scabbers. He got away at one point and crawled into my bag. Unfortunately he decided that would be the best place to relieve himself.

That is disgusting!

You're not the only book that got wet you know.

I bet I'm the only one that cared.

Probably. It looks like he may have gnawed on you a little bit too.

Maybe you should introduce it to Tom? the cat can make itself useful and gnaw on it.

That's not very nice Tom. It's just a harmless little rat. He didn't know any better.

I don't care. I hate rats. Especially ones that dare to chew on me.

Stop being so over dramatic.

I'm not.

Are too.

Am not.

You're such a child.

I know you are but what am I?

Really Tom? Is that how you're going to behave now?

Oh just go away.

Fine. Good day.

That stupid rat had better pray I never get my hands on it.

You don't even have hands.

And at this rate I never will.

Such a baby.

Chapter for kgfinkel who asked for Scabbers to pee and chew on the diary. :)

I would also like to give a very special thanks to Dan534 who is translating this story to French. (I am amazingly excited about this!) Thanks Dan.

37. Hagrid

I honestly think Hargid is the most wonderful Care of Magical Creatures Professor there ever was!

What?

He's just so good and caring and he really understands the creatures so well.

Luna stop!

What?

Are you honestly telling me they made that dimwitted oaf of a half giant a professor?

Tom! That is possibly the most terrible thing you have ever said to me. Hagrid is a lovely, lovely person!

Luna if you think that's the most terrible thing I've said you haven't been paying attention.

I don't know why I bother sometimes. Just when I think you are changing for the better you go and show your true colours!

I've never pretended to be anything but what I am.

Then why am I even bothering to help you?

Because you're nice and you care about me.

I shouldn't. I should just put you away and forget about you.

Why don't you?

I don't know.

I think you like me.

Against my better judgement.

And mine.

Do you like me Tom?

I tolerate you.

Liar.

What is the oaf doing that's so special then?

There you go, changing the subject as soon as you feel vulnerable.

Fine don't tell me. I don't really care anyway.

He brought nifflers in the other day. They crawled all over the place looking for little shiny treats Hagrid had hidden about the grounds. It was adorable.

Annoying little pests. It's no wonder you would like them.

He also has a Hippogriff. He hasn't shown him in class yet but I saw the beautiful darling when I was on my way to feed the Thestrals. He was breathtaking.

Oh a Hippogriff, in a school where anyone could run the risk of offending it? That's marvellous. Next week will be dragons I suppose?

Don't be silly Tom. Who would ever want to offend such a spectacular creature?

You and I have very different definitions of spectacular.

Quite. And of course there won't be dragons, he had to send his dragon to a sanctuary two years ago.

His dr...he actually had a dragon!? Are you joking?

No. Ginny told me; she heard it from her brother.

You're certain she wasn't mistaken?

Of course. Hagrid confirmed it when I asked him. It was only a baby one.

Merlin's beard! It shouldn't surprise me but it does.

His name was Norbert.

Only Hagrid would name a dragon Norbert.

What would you name a dragon if you had one?

I wouldn't have one. I have more sense than that.

Of course. You just had safe pets. Like a beautiful cat called Belle.

You leave Belle out of this!

You're so sweet when you're being sensitive.

I am not! and Belle was not my only pet. I have in fact had several snakes. Some of them quite dangerous.

I can believe that. You seem like a snake person.

Was that meant as an insult?

An insult? Me? Whatever gave you that idea?

You are learning bad habits from me Luna Lovegood.

I think that's one of the few things we can both agree on.

Give me a little longer and maybe I can convince you to finally deal with those bullies of yours.

You don't have anywhere near that much influence Tom.

Give me time.

There isn't enough time in the world.

You underestimate me.

You underestimate me.

Luna my dear. I wouldn't dare.

See, you do like me.

I grudgingly respect you and admit there is more to you than I originally anticipated.

And you like me.

A little.

I knew it.

38. Boggarts and orcs

Tom I found the most exciting book!

More exciting than me?

Why? Are you jealous?

No. Don't be ridiculous.

Are you still upset that I have another diary?

I was never upset! I just think it's unfair that you never talk to me about anything interesting.

I talk to you about lots of interesting things.

I mean interesting by my definition Luna, not yours.

Fine. What do you want to talk about?

I...well...I can't think of anything right now...you haven't given me any time.

Well what areas interest you?

Since you are asking, I always liked the dark arts.

I like that too.

You do?

Yes. Defence is a great subject. With the right teacher of course. I already told you about Professor Lupin didn't I?

The werewolf? Yes I recall he likes to place children in front of mildly dangerous creatures with very little preparation and let you fight them.

That's not quite what I said. You make it sound terrible.

It's not exactly the best method I've ever heard.

It's learning through experience.

Experience comes with time. Children are not always equipped for such things. Case in point; you mentioned a Boggart.

Yes. So?

I can only imagine his aim was to help you children to conquer any irrational fears you might have.

Yes. I suppose that was the point.

Well the failing there is that not all fears are irrational. Assuming that children have nothing genuine to be afraid of is just irresponsible. Take you for example.

My greatest fear is Venomous Tanacular Toads.

I know that. And I am very disappointed that I wasn't able to stand witness when that showed up in the middle of a classroom I assure you.

It was quite funny seeing everyone's faces. They seemed just as frightened when I turned it into a pulley-tot though. I can't imagine why.

It's a true mystery. My point is, you lost your mother at a young age. It was highly possible your greatest fear might have been losing your father as well. How would you have felt if you had suddenly been confronted with the sight of his corpse right there in a classroom in front of all your classmates?

Oh...that would have been awful. I see what you mean.

I just feel that a little more common sense should be applied. I'm sure for many of the children that approach will be excellent but for others it could do more harm than good.

You're right. I might mention it to him.

If you like. Anyway that's not quite what I meant.

What isn't?

I said I liked dark arts. Not defence.

Oh. That's...not really an area I have much interest in.

I didn't think it would be.

Why do you like it?

It's just interesting. It takes magic to its full potential. Levels that most people are too afraid to explore.

For good reason.

True. But that's what makes it exciting.

I suppose I can understand that. As a Ravenclaw the discovery and development of magical practices has always had an appeal. I can see how the unique possibilities offered through the study of the dark arts would be tempting.

Maybe when you're older you could look into it?

Maybe. Maybe not. It's not something I would think about now.

Fair enough. Anyway, you mentioned a most exciting book?

That you are certainly not jealous of.

Just tell me already.

It's fascinating. It details the journey of these delightful creatures called Hobbits.

I'll bet it can't teach you how to fight a dementor.

True, but equally you can't teach me how to outrun an army of orc's.

What in Merlin's name is an orc?

I'm glad you asked Tom...

39. Recruits

I need a second opinion.

On what?

A potion.

What potion?

It's something I invented.

Luna we talked about this.

No we didn't. We talked about me inventing spells.

Potions are just as risky.

I know. That's why I'm asking you. It's just an idea I have. I want to know if you think it has merit. I promise not to actually brew anything without a great deal of care and research.

Fair enough I suppose. What's the potion?

It's an idea I have for a modified Polyjuice Potion that will only change specific body parts such as hands or ears or noses etc.

What exactly would be the purpose of that?

I was thinking of slipping it to those girls that have been bothering me to give them giant man hands for a few hours...or maybe Professor Snape's nose, although I'm not yet certain how I would get a sample of his hair.

Interesting. The idea has merit.

Thank you.

You're becoming something of an evil genius Luna.

Not evil. Mildly sinister perhaps.

I don't think you ever do anything mildly Luna. What do you have so far?

Hold on a moment. I'll write out my notes for you...

...

Ok so we've isolated the elements that allow targeted changes and eliminated the ingredients that would have made it poisonous.

Yes. Thank you so much for your help with that.

Yes well I would have gladly left them in if you hadn't threatened to take me to Azkaban with you if you got arrested for murder.

I know. But thank you anyway.

No problem.

So all we need now is the hair.

Are you sure you want to use Snape's? Dumbledore sheds his beard all over this castle, that would be far easier to get hold of.

That's true but It would upset them more if it was Snape.

You really have developed quite a mean streak my dear.

I have not. They just deserve a little payback now and then. I'm not the only one they are nasty to you know.

Of course. You're a hero really. Standing up for the underdogs.

Don't be sarcastic Tom.

I'm not. I fully support this noble quest.

Sure you do.

How are you planning to get the hair?

I don't know. It would be impossible during class but he locks his office outside of class times and getting into his personal rooms would be suicide.

Probably.

Maybe I shouldn't risk it.

Or maybe you should get someone else to risk it instead.

I couldn't do that.

Why not? I used to do it all the time. You just need to find someone else sympathetic to the cause who is willing to put themselves on the line in the name of the mission.

I don't think anyone in this school would be willing to risk being incinerated just to help me pull a prank on some bullies Tom

Ye of little faith. There is always someone who is brave, reckless or stupid enough for a mission like this. You just need to know where to look.

And where is that?

Did Ginny ever tell you about her brothers? The twins?

Fred and George?

That's it. From what I remember they are just the kind of recruits we need.

You are taking this very seriously.

I'm having fun. I don't get many chances to do that these days. Let me have this moment.

Fine. I'll ask them. But if they say no we may need to give up on the Professor Snape idea.

Fair enough. Let me know how it goes.

...

Tom?

What did they say?

I've got the hair.

Already?

Yes. I don't know how they got it so fast but they got it. They even gave me some extra help refining the potion to disguise the taste.

Excellent. I told you they were the guys for the job.

You were right although I'm slightly worried about the consequences.

You will be fine. Just blame it on them if you get caught. Given their reputations everyone will believe you.

I would never do that Tom, and that's not the consequence I meant anyway.

What then?

I've caught their attention. They were so impressed by my plan they've turned their hair the same shade as mine and begun telling people we're triplets.

Oh dear. That's not good.

It's quite sweet actually.

Just as long as they don't start dragging you into their own pranks.

It might be fun now and then.

It might get you a great deal of attention that will wind up getting me confiscated.

I wouldn't let that happen Tom.

See that you don't.

...

It worked, I slipped the potion into the girls morning pumpkin juice. They screamed and ran out of the Great Hall crying. It was funny.

Yep, definitely developing a mean streak. I blame myself.

So do I.

40. Snape

Tom, one of the girls I pranked has a Mother at a high position in the Ministry of magic. They've ordered Dumbledore to find out who did it immediately. They say there are going to be serious consequences. What do I do?

Blame the twins! Put it all on them.

No Tom. I could never do that. It wouldn't be right.

Well what are you planning to do then?

I don't know. I'm scared. What if I get expelled?

You won't. Dumbledore won't let that happen.

He might not have a choice. Professor Snape is already analysing the remains of the potion from the goblets to find out who brewed it.

He can do that?

Apparently.

That's interesting.

That's terrifying Tom. He's going to know it was me and tell the Ministry and I'm going to be kicked out of Hogwarts!

Calm down. Nothing is certain yet. They might not find anything. Just relax.

I can't.

Try.

I don't think I'm going to sleep at all tonight.

Try Luna. You need to stay calm. If you panic you will only look suspicious.

...

Professor Snape knows it was me.

Oh dear.

It's ok. He isn't going to tell the Ministry. He's promised to tell them there wasn't enough potion left to track the brewer.

Really? Why?

He said he was impressed with my manipulation of the potion. He thinks I have real potential in the subject and wants me to do private lessons with him.

That's fantastic Luna.

I know. He's actually been really nice to me.

He most likely doesn't get many students that show real ingenuity in potions. Most just stick to the book.

That's true. Plus he seemed to enjoy the idea of me using it to get back at bullies.

That's understandable. Probably had his own back at school.

Maybe. I wonder if he would have given me the hair if I had asked?

Might have. Probably not though. It's not something he would have wanted leading back to him.

True. I'm really excited about this.

You should be. A good teacher is invaluable.

I feel like I'm cheating a little though.

Why?

He thinks it was all my work but it was yours too.

It was mostly your input and research though. I just helped tweak it.

And the twins. I did admit to their part in helping me though.

Really? I thought you weren't going to risk getting them in trouble.

I wasn't. When Professor Snape called me into a meeting Fred and George found out somehow and burst into his office saying it was their idea and that they had made me do it.

I told you they were the perfect scapegoats!

And I told you I'm not willing to blame others for my actions.

Suit yourself. What did Snape say?

After I explained everything, excluding you of course, he grudgingly admitted that the twins both have some strong potions talent too, though apparently they have hidden it well during his lessons. They've both been invited to the additional lessons with me.

What did they say to that?

They said they would come, partially to annoy him and partially to keep an eye on me.

How kind.

I know. I have been told not to tell anyone about it though. They say they have a reputation to uphold and this would ruin it. Snape said something similar actually.

So you ,Professor Snape and the Weasley twins are starting a secret potions club?

Yep. And there I was thinking you were always going to be the strangest thing in my life.

At least we can safely say you will always be the strangest thing in mine.

Chapter dedicated to Trickster32 who suggested that Snape might have approved of the plan and willingly provided the hair. We all know he would appreciate a clever potions brewer at least. (Excluding Hermione who of course never would have dared strayed from the book. Although I do love Hermione too)

41. Midnight

Good evening Tom.

Where have you been?

What?

You usually talk to me earlier than this. Why so late?

You can tell time?

Not really, but I'm getting the hang of measuring the gaps between our conversations. You're quite regular...

Sarcastic follow-up in 3...2...

...it's actually the only thing about you that is regular.

And there it is.

You know me far too well.

I know. Its worrying isn't it?

Indeed.

I was feeding Midnight.

What?

That's why I'm late. I went to feed Midnight.

Who or what is Midnight?

He's a dog. A stray I found living out by the edge of the forbidden forest.

You're feeding strays now?

It's not his fault he's a stray. He's a lovely dog. He just had some bad luck that's all.

What were you doing by the forbidden forest anyway?

I went to feed the thestrals.

Them too? Exactly how many creatures are you feeding?

I like to care for things.

You need to take better care of yourself. You know there's an escaped convict running about right? One who is supposedly out to get one of your fellow schoolmates. You shouldn't be out by the forest alone.

I highly doubt Sirius Black is going to be coming that close to the school Tom. Not with Dumbledore protecting us.

Don't put so much faith in that old codger Luna. He isn't the miracle worker he wants the world to thinks he is.

He doesn't want people to think he's a miracle worker Tom.

Sure he does. He's been pushing that image for years.

He's a good man.

He's a manipulative old menace who doesn't know when to mind his own business.

Professor Dumbledore has a lot of people under his care. Minding his own business isn't an option. It is necessary for him to mind all of us.

And yet he's letting one of his students run about the grounds at night with a murderer on the loose.

That's not his fault. He doesn't know I go out. He can't watch every student all the time.

Exactly! And yet you convince yourself that you are always safe in this school because Dumbledore is protecting you. But as the evidence shows, he can't. Not always.

You tricked me!

I helped you see the flaw in your unjustified faith.

It was mean.

It was necessary.

I still need to feed Midnight.

Midnight can find food elsewhere, I'm sure he survived well enough before meeting you.

But he's all alone.

He's a dog Luna. He will get by.

What if I take someone with me?

Who?

I don't know. Neville?

What help will Neville be against a murderer? You will just be putting you both in danger.

Maybe I could sneak Midnight into the castle? Then I wouldn't have to go out to the forest.

Where would you keep a dog?

I don't know. It's a big castle. There has to be somewhere.

What if it attacks your cat?

He wouldn't do that!

You don't know that.

I do. There is another cat that I've seen hanging around him occasionally and he's never attacked that one.

What other cat?

I'm not sure. Some ugly mangy looking thing that keeps attacking Ginny's brothers rat.

I like this cat already. Find out who owns it and swap it for Tom.

I don't want it!

Why not? I thought you liked all animals.

I do but I don't want that one.

Suit yourself.

What were we talking about again?

Where you were going to hide a stray dog.

Oh yes I remember now.

Maybe Hagrid would feed it if you asked?

That's a wonderful idea. I'm sure he would.

And I'm sure he would tell you that running around the forest unaccompanied is very ill advised.

You worry too much.

You don't worry enough. What if you did run into that convict one day? What would you do?

Well I can't really say until it happens. If I ever do meet him I'll let you know.

42. Attack

Sirius Black attacked the school!

What?

He got inside. I don't know how but he did. He tried to get into the Gryffindor dormitory.

Makes sense if he's after Potter. Did they catch him?

No. He got away. They are searching the school now.

He's still in the school? Where are you?

In the Great Hall. All the students are here. I think we are going to be sleeping here.

How long have they been searching?

Not long. Everyone is in a panic, they pulled us all out of bed.

Are you sure it's safe to be talking to me? What if someone sees?

I think so. I'm pretending to write in a schoolbook.

Just be careful.

I will Tom. I have to go now. Ginny and Neville are coming over and...

Luna? Luna?

...

Sorry about that earlier. I had to put you away before Ginny noticed.

Fair enough.

I was right, we are sleeping here. Everyone has been given sleeping bags.

He still hasn't been found?

No. There are ministry officials everywhere searching the castle.

Do they plan on sending the students home if they don't find him?

I'm not sure yet. Nothing has been mentioned.

Probably not then. Merlin forbid Dumbledore actually make a decision in the best interests of his students even with a murderer running through his school.

I'm not having this argument again Tom.

That's because you lost last time.

Did not.

Did too.

You are such a child.

So are you.

They've just turned the lights down. I have to go now. I can barely see.

Can't you cast Lumos?

Someone might see. We're trying not to draw attention.

Good point. Goodnight.

I'll talk to you tomorrow.

...

Tom?

Did they catch him?

No. They've let us back into our dorms though.

Told you so.

There are guards everywhere Tom, Teachers patrolling the grounds and Dementors surrounding the school boundary. Professor Dumbledore is hardly being complacent.

The Dementors are no help if he's already inside.

They searched everywhere. He must have left.

They searched everywhere they could think of. That isn't everywhere. There are parts of this school even Dumbledore doesn't know about.

Such as?

Well for starters I happen to know about a concealed Chamber beneath the school that almost no-one is aware of.

Where?

It doesn't matter.

It does if Sirius Black is hiding there.

He isn't.

How do you know?

Because I know.

How?

Because he couldn't get in. You need...special talents to open the entrance.

What special talents?

Doesn't matter. All that matters is that it is a skill that does not run in the Black family line.

You're sure?

Yes.

And you're really not going to tell me?

No.

Fine. Well we can only hope at this point that Sirius Black is not aware of any secret underground chambers that don't require special talents to get into.

We can only hope. This whole thing is still risky though. You need to stop going out alone.

Ok.

Really? You're actually listening to me for once?

I listen to you all the time.

Do not.

Do too.

Name one occasion you have actually followed my advice!

Well...I can't think of any right now but there were lots of times.

Sure there were.

I need to go to class.

Give it some thought while you're there and get back to me about those lots of times.

I will.

43. Anger

Draco Malfoy is an evil selfish little monster!

Interesting. Please elaborate.

He's trying to get Buckbeak killed!

Buckbeak?

Hagrid's hippogriff.

Oh yes I remember now. Why is he trying to kill it then?

That stupid boy insulted him during a class and got a tiny little bump and now he's saying he was viciously attacked and his father is calling for poor Buckbeak to be put down.

I did tell you something like this was going to happen.

It's not Buckbeaks fault! He barely touched him.

How do you know? Where you there?

No but Ginny's brother was and so were his friends. The girl, Hermione told me that Malfoy only got a little bruised and was faking injury even after Madam Pomfrey had healed him.

How unfortunate. I suppose the giant is regretting that class now.

Shut up Tom! Just shut up!

Well that was rude.

So what if it was? An innocent creature is going to die! Can you just pretend to care for once!

Fine. What do you want me to do?

I don't know.

Then why are you even telling me?

Because I'm upset and angry and I hate him so much and I need to tell someone and I can say things to you I can't say to anyone else.

Such as?

Such as I wish that stupid little brat really had been hurt. I wish he'd been maimed. I wish he'd been killed! At least then this whole mess would be justified.

I really have been a bad influence on you haven't I?

Maybe. Or maybe I was always like this and you never just knew it. Everyone has some darkness in them Tom. This is mine.

Some have more than others. This isn't darkness Luna. It's barely a shadow. You're just angry.

I'm not just angry. I hate him Tom. I hate him so much.

Maybe you should speak to some of the teachers? Surely someone can testify that the boy was exaggerating his injury.

It won't help. His father has too much influence. He can manipulate people to agree with him and make sure that Buckbeak gets punished.

How do you know that?

My Father did a story on corruption in the ministry last year.

Interesting. Not all of his stories are nonsense then.

Shut up Tom!

You really are angry aren't you?

Furious.

How about a truth potion?

What?

You could spike the boys drink with it. Get him to confess to faking it. Maybe that will help the creatures defence?

I doubt it would. Anyway I don't know how to make a truth potion.

Couldn't you ask about it in that potion club of yours?

It's illegal to dose people with truth potion. Professor Snape wouldn't allow it.

You're not very optimistic today are you?

It's hard to feel optimistic when an innocent beautiful creature is going to suffer for no reason.

It's hard to feel happy when surrounded by dementors but you managed that. Are you even sure he's going to be put down? Have they actually ordered it?

Not yet but they will. I can feel it like a ball of misery in my stomach.

Can't you help the creature escape? They have wings don't they?

Where would he go on his own? They would hunt him down!

Hide him in the forest then?

They would find him Tom. That's stupid. Stop saying stupid things. I need a real idea!

I'm trying my best Luna. Stop snapping at me.

I'm not snapping.

Yes you are. I don't have to help you, you know?

Fine then don't!

I didn't mean I wouldn't...Luna?...Luna talk to me...Luna?

...

Tom?

You're talking to me again then?

They've sent official notice that Buckbeak is being put on trial. It's only a matter of time now.

I'm sorry Luna.

Me too. I didn't meant to take it out on you.

Its fine.

What do I do Tom?

I don't know what to do about the Hippogriff, but if it's any consolation at all I have given the matter a lot of thought whilst you were away and come up with a spell that can make the Malfoy boy grow feathers. You will probably get a few detentions but I've worked it so the only way to get rid of them will be to pluck him.

It will be worth it.

You want to hear it then?

Yes.

Good girl. Trust me, revenge can be very satisfying. There are some complicated wand motions involved so you may want to take notes.

Ok.

...

It worked. The little coward is being plucked as we speak and I have detention for the next two months.

Feel better?

A little. Hermione hugged me and Fred and George are blonde again.

There's still hope Luna. They haven't reached a verdict yet.

Thank you Tom.

Looking back over the book I've found that the Malfoy / Buckbeak incident actually happened before the boggart so my timeline is a little skewed here. Sorry.

I'm considering doing a Secret Potions Club side story. Thoughts? :)

44. Teaching

Professor Lupin heard about me performing the Patronus Charm on the train, he's asked me to help him teach Harry Potter how to ward off Dementors.

Why?

Apparently Harry's affected quite badly by them. Ginny says he fainted on the train.

I understand why Potter would want to learn; I meant why is Lupin asking you to help? He's a Defence teacher, why does he need a student to help him teach?

I think he just wants to put Harry at ease; show him that there are other students who can perform the spell so he knows it isn't beyond his capabilities.

Maybe it is. Do you actually know what his capabilities are?

Not really but I can't imagine he's entirely without talent.

He's a Gryffindor. Don't put your expectations too high.

Don't be such a cynic.

I'm just being realistic. Gryffindors are notoriously stupid.

That is not true. In fact there is no evidence of intelligence differing between any of the four houses.

That's ridiculous! Everyone knows Ravenclaws are smarter than the rest. Isn't that the whole point of your house? and of course Slytherins are highly talented as well.

Ravenclaw's are more studious and Slytherin's are more ambitious, so yes they typically achieve higher grades, but in terms of actual intelligence natural ability can be found in every house.

Agree to disagree.

It's a proven fact. Some Gryffindor's are very intelligent. Dumbledore was in Gryffindor.

If that old crackpot is your best example then I rest my case.

You need more examples? Professor McGonagall, Professor Lupin, several of Ginny's brothers are very successful and clever and they were all Gryffindors and Hermione, the girl I told you about before, is apparently achieving higher grades than a lot of the Ravenclaws.

Really?

Yeah, I heard some of the older girls complaining about it. Oh and then there's...

Stop. I get the point. They aren't all dimwits. Most but not all.

So I win?

I didn't say that.

Shhh...I need a moment to enjoy my victory.

Ha ha ha very funny. I suppose you will find out how capable the boy is soon enough anyhow.

Boy?

Potter.

Oh yes. I'd forgotten what we were originally talking about. Actually that reminds me, I'm due to meet them for the first lesson in ten minutes. Talk to you later.

...

Good evening Tom.

How did the lesson go?

It went well. He can't produce the full Patronus yet but has managed a pretty good shield.

Pathetic.

It was only his first try.

So? You produced a full Patronus on your first try whilst surrounded by Dementors. I told you he would be disappointing.

I think he did very well.

You're too soft.

You're too critical.

It's not my fault if this kid is useless.

He isn't.

Well for the supposed saviour of the Wizarding World he certainly isn't all that impressive.

He's thirteen. People put far too much expectation on him.

Well clearly their faith is misplaced.

Well maybe they should stop putting their faith in him and accept that he is just a normal child who is allowed to have flaws just like everyone else.

So you admit he's not very good?

I didn't say that.

Shhh...I need a moment to enjoy my victory.

You're such a child.

45. Pettigrew

Master?

What? Luna?

No Master. It's me.

Very helpful. Now tell me you dim-witted twit, who exactly are you?

Peter Pettigrew My Lord. Your most faithful servant.

I vaguely recall the name.

Thank you my Lord. Thank you. You honour me.

Stop pandering, it's irritating. Where's Luna?

The girl is sleeping my Lord. I am under her bed.

You're what? Why? How did you find this diary? And how do you know who I am?

I've been searching for it my Lord. I learned many years ago about your diary and that you had left it with Malfoy before your disappearance.

I'm not certain you know how this works or which version of me you are talking to.

I do My Lord. Every version of you is my Master.

Indeed. Well you may not be completely useless. You still haven't told me how you found me.

Sorry Master, last year I received evidence that the diary was in the possession of someone at Hogwarts. I've been checking every students bag in search of you.

What evidence?

The young witch sister of the wizard I was hiding with mentioned a diary to him. A diary that responded to her questions and called itself Tom. By the time she confided in her brother about it within earshot of myself the foolish witch had already misplaced you so I assumed that one of the other students must have taken you and immediately began my search.

The only witch who's possession I was in before now was Ginerva Weasley. Are you honestly suggesting that one of the Weasley children has been harbouring one of my Death Eaters and smuggling him into Hogwarts?

Not knowingly Master. I have been hiding with the family without their knowledge in my animagus form.

Your animagus form?

Yes My Lord.

Why?

I faked my death the night you were lost to us My Lord. I was forced to flee. I stayed in this form to hide. To listen for news of your return so I could position myself to aid you as soon as I could.

And you have been in the possession of Ginervas brother as a pet?

Yes My Lord.

Your animagus wouldn't happen to be a rat would it?

Yes My Lord how did you know?

The same worthless disgusting little rat that chewed and urinated on me!?

I'm sorry My Lord. I'm so terribly sorry! Please forgive me. I didn't mean to...I just didn't recognise you. I mean no disrespect Master I just...I never would have expected the Diary of Lord Voldemort to be bright purple and covered in sequins.

I'm what? Damn it Luna!

Do you want me to deal with her My Lord?

Deal with her?

Yes Master. She could cause trouble. She knows about you. Can profess to the diary's existence. When we leave she may go to Dumbledore, it could hinder our escape.

When we leave?

Of course Master. Now that I have found you we can go. The girls potential interference could pose a risk though. I could lure her outside and kill her. Everyone will blame Black and it will create enough panic for us to slip away unnoticed.

NO!

My Lord?

You will not harm the girl.

Why?

Why? Do you always question your Masters orders you insipid worm?!

No Master. I'm sorry Master. I didn't mean to Master.

Shut up! All you need to know is I have plans for Luna Lovegood that require her to stay alive.

Yes My Lord. I understand.

Now pay attention. I will not explain this twice.

Yes Master.

Firstly, I am not leaving with you.

What? But...

SILENCE. I am speaking!

I'm sorry

SHUT UP! You will not say another word.

...

Good...now as I was saying...I have plans here. On top of that, I assume that you intend to escape in your animagus form?

...

Answer me vermin!

But you said...

I know what I said! But when I ask you a question you answer it!

Yes My Lord.

You will be escaping as a rat? Yes?

Yes My Lord. I need to get away quickly though. Black is searching for me.

I thought he was here for the Potter boy?

No My Lord. That's what the world thinks but he was never a member of our cause. He came here for me.

Why?

He was a friend of the Potters. He wants me dead for the role I played in the attack on them.

What role?

I was their secret keeper My Lord. I was the one who brought you news of their whereabouts.

And got me nearly killed.

I'm sorry Master. I had no idea that, that could...

Shut up. It doesn't matter right now. In any case, I have no intention of being dragged along by a rat for Merlin knows how long. That Black is after you makes you taking me even more risky.

Maybe I could...

Quiet!

...

Good boy. You're learning.

Thank you Master.

Or perhaps not. Anyway, I have things to do here still and need to stay. You will go alone. I have a task for you.

I will do everything I can for you Master.

Good. Now, tear out a page from the back of me.

My Lord?

Just do it!

...

Good. This is how we will communicate whilst separated. I will be sending you instructions. You will follow them without question. Are we clear?

Yes Master.

Excellent. Now; put me back where you found me then get out of this school and as far away as possible, head South, towards London. I will contact you when I decide it is time.

Yes Master. Thank you for this honour.

Shut up and go vermin.

Show of hands, who saw that one coming? because I didn't :) Hope you don't mind this odd turn of events.

I figured Perter was a bit of a sneak so he probably spied on other death eaters as a rat and found out things he wasn't mean to know about. Like Toms diary.

46. Sirius

Tom? Are you there? Tom?

I'm here what's wrong?

I have a bit of a problem.

Is it something you can ask the nurse about?

Not that sort of problem Tom.

What then?

Please don't be mad at me.

Why? Luna what's going on?

I...sort of...maybe...kind of... got kidnapped by Sirius Black.

WHAT?!

It's ok...I think. He's actually being quite nice so far.

Are you insane girl? How did this happen?

Well I went to visit Hagrid about Buckbeak and he wasn't there.

So?

So I heard a noise nearby and thought it might be Hagrid so I went to look but it was just Buckbeak.

And?

And then I saw some of the Thestral's and realised I hadn't visited them in a while so I went a little further into the forest to check on them.

Do you remember why you haven't visited them for a while? This is why Luna. This exact reason!

I just went to say hello.

You got kidnapped by an escaped convict!

I told you he seems nice.

I can't believe you right now.

You didn't even let me finish my story.

I already know how it ends! It ends with you kidnapped.

Well I went to see the Thestral's, then I heard a groan like someone was in pain so I went towards that.

And got kidnapped!

And found Mr Black who looked hurt and I asked him if he was ok.

You asked if he was ok? You actually stopped to talk to the murderer? Why didn't you run?

He wasn't ok. He looked quite I'll actually.

Who cares?

Once he saw me he panicked and grabbed me so I couldn't call the teachers.

What a surprise!

He says he's sorry. He didn't want to kidnap me.

Well that makes everything ok then!

Calm down.

Calm down? You're telling me to calm down?

Yes. I'm the one who got kidnapped.

Exactly! You got kidnapped. By someone who is potentially very dangerous.

You don't know that. I told you he seems nice.

Does he? Does the escaped convict seem nice to you? I'm sure he's a real sweetheart!

If you're going to be like this I'm not going to talk to you.

Don't...Wait. How are you talking to me? Where is Black?

He went out.

Where are you?

In a house. I think it's the Shrieking Shack in Hogsmead.

He left you alone?

Yes.

Why are you talking to me then? Why aren't you trying to escape!

I'm tied up and he has my wand. He left my arms free and let me keep my bag though.

He tied you up?

Yes.

You think the guy who kidnapped you and tied you up in a haunted house seems nice?

Yes.

What is wrong with you?

I like to see the best in people.

You are deluded.

Don't be rude Tom.

Are you sure you can't get free?

The ropes are charmed so I can't untie them. I have enough movement to get comfortable and move my arms but that's it.

How long has he been gone?

About half an hour. I think he's gone to get food.

He wasn't a Death Eater.

What?

I don't know how to help you but I can tell you that much. He wasn't a Death Eater and I don't think he is after the Potter boy...I think he's after someone else.

I know. He told me the same. How could you know that?

I can't tell you how. I just know.

When this is over we need to talk.

Ok.

He's coming back. I think there is someone else with him. I hear voices.

Who?

I don't know. I have to go.

Be safe.

47. Captive

Pettigrew ... Answer me rodent!

Yes Master. Sorry Master. How may I serve you Master?

Shut up and quit pandering. There has been a new development. Where are you?

I have just crossed the border into England Master.

Stop where you are and wait for further instructions. I may need you to return to the school.

But My Lord it is not safe for me there.

So? Are you not willing to risk your life in the service of your Lord?

Yes Master, of course, but...

But nothing. If I say go back you will go back. Besides, for now I have only said to wait. It isn't yet clear how things will progress.

What is happening there that concerns you my Lord?

None of your business! Just stay put and wait for my instructions.

Yes my Lord. Of course My Lord.

Oh shut up!

...

Tom, Are you there?

Of course I am, where else would I be? I can hardly go out for a stroll now can I?

No need to be rude.

I'm not being rude I'm just frustrated. You got yourself kidnapped for goodness sake!

Relax It's fine.

It is? Did he let you go? Are you back in Hogwarts?

No, I'm still in the Shrieking Shack. But on the bright side Neville is here too now.

What?

Neville Longbottom. I told you about him before.

Yes I know that. I'm struggling to see how that is a bright side! Why is he there?

Mr Black brought him.

Why?

I assume it's to keep me company.

To keep you company?

Yes. So I'm not afraid about being here alone. It was quite thoughtful of him really.

Oh yes. It's so kind of him to kidnap two children instead of just the one.

Well it would be far scarier here on my own. It is nice to have someone to talk to.

You have me to talk to.

Yes but he doesn't know that.

You know there is a far better solution for making you less scared... Letting you go!

I don't think he feels that is an option right now. He seems very intent on finding whoever he's searching for. He can't risk letting me go until then. He knows I could tell the teachers where he is.

Can't you just promise not to?

I doubt he would take my word for it Tom.

Offer to pinkie swear?

I'll give it a try.

That was a joke Luna...Luna?

He said it was kind of me to offer but we are just going to have to wait until he has caught the 'slimy rat!' He seemed quite angry when he said that. I wonder who he's looking for?

Are you writing to me in front of him?

He doesn't know what I'm writing. I told him I'm doing homework because it calms me.

And he believed you?

Of course he did; I'm a Ravenclaw, he was a Gryffindor. They think that's all we ever do.

I told you Gryffindor's were stupid.

I didn't say that Tom.

Whatever. Tell him the rat is no longer in Hogwarts.

Why?

Because the rat is no longer in Hogwarts.

How do you know?

I just do.

Who is the rat?

It doesn't matter.

I disagree. I suspect Neville does too.

Fine, the rat is a Death Eater who has been hiding in the school. That's all I can say.

How do you know these things? It isn't Professor Snape is it? Because I know he was a Death Eater once and I would hate for Mr Black to be after him. He's been so nice to me recently. Did I tell you about our latest potions club meeting? It was very interesting.

Now is really not the time Luna. And no it isn't Snape.

Ok. I'll tell you later. And good.

Did you tell him?

Yes. He wants to know how I know.

What did you say?

I shrugged. Now he thinks I'm just saying things so he will let me go.

Oh great.

What was I supposed to say?

I don't know Luna. I hadn't actually thought that far.

He's being very kind again. He's promised not to hurt either me or Neville and says he will try to get us back to the school as soon as possible. He seems very upset about this whole thing.

Where is Longbottom?

Neville is asleep next to me. I'm glad he's able to sleep; he needs it. He was clearly afraid earlier, though I think he was trying to be brave for me. I am sorry he got caught up in this actually, I would have been ok on my own.

Is there any reason Longbottom was chosen as the second captive?

Just an easy target I suspect. He got stuck outside his dorm because they kept changing the password and he couldn't remember them.

Another example of Dumbledore's masterful devotion to students safety.

Mr Black just went out again.

Searching for the rat no doubt.

The rat that isn't here.

Exactly.

I think we're going to be here for a while.

...

Pettigrew

Yes Master?

Head back into Scotland and move towards the school. Don't go in yet. Just closer.

Yes Master. Whatever you wish Master.

...

Master?

What?

You won't let Black hurt me will you?

Just shut up and wait for my commands rodent

...

It has been a whole day since I was first brought here. Mr Black has said I can call him Sirius; he and Neville are both sleeping. Sirius says he isn't a murderer or a traitor, someone called Peter framed him and Peter is here at Hogwarts. He's is trying to find him to protect Harry Potter and clear his own name.

Very concise summary.

Thank you.

Peter is not at Hogwarts.

Yes you said. Should I even bother asking how you know?

No.

Will you ever tell me?

I will. One day.

What should I do?

I assume you are still tied up?

Yes.

Not much you can do then. If anything changes tell me immediately. if it's an emergency just scribble an X or tip the ink on me so I know and I will do what I can. If Black appears to become a danger tell him you can get him the rat.

Can I?

I can.

How?

I'll tell you later Luna.

Why would he be a danger anyway? I thought you said he wasn't a Death Eater?

He spent over a decade in Azkaban. Even if he wasn't guilty back then he may be unstable now.

Fair point. Do you think Peter will come back?

I know he will. If necessary.

What does that mean?

I'll...

...tell me later, I know. You're acting so weird lately.

So? You act weird all the time and I don't complain about it.

Yes you do; constantly. Besides, it suits me. On you it just looks odd.

Touché my dear.

Hey everyone. I just returned from a wonderful holiday in Italy to find many lovely comments on this story. Thank you so much to all my readers for sticking with me and for your kind support :) Hope you all like the direction this is moving in.

48. Day two

I've been in this house for almost a day and a half now and I haven't seen even the slightest evidence of it being haunted.

Interesting. I don't recall it being haunted when I was at school either. I'm not sure when that rumour started actually.

I think it was back when my father was at school, or maybe a little after that.

I wonder what caused it?

Me too. There are definitely no ghosts here. I have noticed that the bed is infested with Fortune Beetles though.

Of course it is. And there are skizer-gnats in the curtains.

Do you think so? I'll check.

Joke, Luna. That was a joke.

Wow...I think you're right.

Oh for Merlin's sake!

...

Ok so two students have been missing for nearly two days now, a supposed murderer who has already broken into the school once is known to be in the area, and the legendary Dumbledore has not yet thought to check inside the only abandoned building within walking distance. Am I getting that right? Are they even searching? Has he even noticed you are gone yet?

I hate to admit this Tom, but I'm starting to see your point.

...

I think I've upset Mr Black.

What? How?

Well Neville was getting nervous and that was distressing me so Sirius tried talking to us about school to calm us down.

How did that lead to you upsetting him?

He asked us who our favourite teachers were. Neville said Professor Lupin which Sirius seemed to like, I think they used to be friends.

And what did you say?

I said Professor Lupin was my third favourite after Professor Snape and Professor Flitwick.

I take it he did not approve?

He's been ranting about slimy gits for the last ten minutes.

I assume he isn't referring to Flitwick.

Probably not.

...

I'm hungry.

I'm not.

You're a book.

What's your point?

You don't get hungry.

Exactly. And I'm not hungry.

I don't even know what to say to that.

...

Didn't you say Black was injured when you found him?

Yes.

Did you ever find out why?

He got kicked by a thestral.

What?

I think he spooked it.

How?

I'll ask.

Ok.

...

Sirius is Midnight.

What?

The dog I was feeding in the forest.

He's an animagus?

Yes.

Well that explains why they haven't caught him at least. He must be unregistered.

That's why the thestral kicked him. He changed form in front of it and it panicked.

I told you Gryffindor's were stupid.

He didn't know it was there.

Why? Can't he see them? Surely he must have seen death at some point? He lived through the war.

I think it was just dark and he didn't notice it.

Gryffindor's = stupid. The evidence mounts.

...

Neville has calmed down now. He seems to be getting along quite well with Mr Black actually.

Really?

I think they are bonding over a mutual dislike of Professor Snape

Makes sense. Nothing connects people faster than a shared enemy.

That's a very pessimistic outlook.

I'm just stating facts.

I think they are being quite unfair; Professor Snape is not that bad, although he has apparently been a little mean to Neville at times.

Define a little.

He threatened to poison his toad once.

That's a bit more than a little.

It was just a threat. He was in a bad mood because Neville kept making mistakes and having to watch him all the time was preventing Snape from teaching the rest of the class. He wouldn't have actually hurt Trevor.

Trevor?

The toad.

How can you be sure?

I asked him. Fred and George brought it up during Potion club because their brother told them about it. The Professor knew Hermione would help Neville fix the potion so it would be safe. He just wanted to scare him a bit so he would focus better in future.

Still seems a bit extreme.

You have encouraged me to torture and poison my classmates on multiple occasions. Are you really in a position to judge?

Good point.

...

Now entering day three in the kidnapping of Luna Lovegood and Neville Longbottom. No rescue in sight. Longbottom has begun to bond with his captor, Lovegood has started reporting on the movements of beetles in the bed and Tom has lost all remaining sanity.

Not funny Tom.

49. Visitors

Tom, something is happening.

What is it?

That cat I told you about before, the ugly one?

Yes. I remember.

It came to the Shack an hour ago. I think it was speaking to Sirius.

What did it say?

I don't know. I don't speak cat.

Oh for goodness sake. What did Black say then?

Nothing directly to me but he seems to be quite agitated. He's muttering about sneaky rats.

The cat has probably confirmed the rat is not in the school anymore.

Oh. That makes sense. Do you think he'll let us go now?

We can only hope.

...

Tom, I don't even know where to begin.

With what?

The last few hours. They have been eventful to say the least.

Why? What happened?

You were right about the cat telling Sirius Peter was gone. He started packing his things and told Neville and I to do the same. I think he was planning to take us back to edge of the school grounds then go after Peter.

Planning to? What went wrong?

Professor Lupin showed up.

Oh dear.

I was right before, they used to be friends.

How did the wolf react to seeing Black?

Don't call him that!

Fine how did Lupin react?

He seemed happy to see Sirius. They hugged.

He hugged the supposed murderer? Doesn't the entire wizarding world think he was a Death Eater?

Well that's where it gets interesting.

Interesting how?

Well... there's a map.

A map?

A map of the school. According to them Sirius, Professor Lupin, Peter Pettigrew and James Potter made it when they were students. It shows the location of everyone in the school.

Really? That's clever.

I know. I thought so too. I might try to make one.

Good idea. Might be useful one day. How does the map relate to this situation though?

Well for some reason I haven't figured out yet, Harry Potter had the map and apparently he saw Peter Pettigrew on it before he left the school. Knowing that Peter was meant to be dead Harry told Professor Lupin about it and Professor Lupin begin to suspect that if Peter was alive Sirius might not be guilty.

That seems like rather thin evidence.

Maybe, but we don't know Mr Black like Professor Lupin does. Maybe he always doubted it a bit and just needed a little evidence to give him hope? Besides we know that it's true. Sirius was innocent.

Fair enough. So how did Lupin find you all?

Oh. That's actually a very interesting point. You know how I mentioned that the Shrieking Shack isn't haunted?

Yes.

Well it turns out, when he was at school the Shrieking Shack is where Professor Lupin would transform during the full moon. He would access it through a secret passage leading to the school grounds. The sounds he made whilst trapped inside where what the locals thought were ghosts.

What self respecting Witch or Wizard can't tell a werewolf from a ghost?

I don't know, I've never heard an angry werewolf tearing up a house so I can't comment.

Touché.

Apparently the reason Sirius became an animagus back then was so he could keep Professor Lupin company during his transformations. Peter and Mr Potter did too. That's why Peter is a rat. I'm not sure what Mr Potter was.

Wait...so Lupin knew about the Shack? Knew that it wasn't haunted and that Black knew how to access it and use it to enter the school premises?

Yes.

Then why did it take him three days to find you?! In fact, why didn't he check there as soon as he knew Black was hiding near the school? Why didn't he tell anyone?

I don't know. I'll have to ask him some time.

Surely Dumbledore must have known too! What is wrong with these teachers? It's a wonder any students actually survive this place!

Maybe that's their teaching method? Give us so little protection that we are forced to become self reliant just to survive.

Luna I think that may be the funniest thing you have ever said to me.

In that case you haven't been paying attention.

You've certainly said more bizarre things, but that was my favourite. It was delightfully cynical. You are beginning to think like a Slytherin.

Merlin help me.

Merlin help us all. What happened next?

Well, after they explained the situation to Neville and I it seemed like we were going to head back to the school with the Professor and Sirius was going to leave.

What went wrong that time?

Professor Snape showed up.

Oh for goodness sake. Why was he there?

I think he followed Professor Lupin. He seemed very relieved to see me. I think he was worried.

I should hope so. At least someone was.

It was a little frightening when he attacked Mr Black though.

How did that turn out?

We all tried to explain that Sirius was innocent but Professor Snape was very angry and wouldn't listen, then they started shouting at each other and there was some very intense name calling going on.

How childish.

I know. In the end Professor Lupin got managed to shield Sirius long enough for him to get out of the house with Professor Snape chasing him. We all got as far as the school grounds when everything went wrong.

What happened?

Well...It was a full moon.

Oh Merlin! Lupin turned?

Unfortunately.

Are you ok?

I'm fine. Professor Snape shielded me and Neville whilst Mr Black changed to his dog form and lured Professor Lupin into the forest.

This is why werewolves shouldn't teach!

Don't be mean Tom. It isn't nice to discriminate.

He could have killed you!

That's not his fault.

Of course it's his fault! He's been a werewolf since he was at school, probably even longer than that, he should know how to be careful by now. What, did he just forget it was the full moon and he was in a building full of vulnerable children?

I suppose not.

Where are you now? Are you safe?

Yes. I'm in the hospital wing with Neville now. Mr Black and Mr Lupin are still in the forest somewhere.

Oh good.

I don't think good is the right word. Professor Snape had to report what happened to the ministry who sent dementors into the forest after them. I'm looking through the window now and can see them moving in the trees.

Maybe you should be resting.

I can't. I'm so worried Tom. I wish there was something I could do.

This isn't your responsibility Luna. You should stay out of it.

Really Tom? It's like you don't even know me.

Sometimes Luna, I wish I didn't.

Liar.

Get some rest Luna. With a werewolf and swarms of dementors running around that forest there isn't much you can do.

I know. I just wish there was.

...

You know something good did come out of tonight.

What's that?

I don't think Neville is quite as scared of Professor Snape anymore.

Why not?

I suspect it's hard to be frightened of someone when you know they're willing to jump in front of a werewolf to protect you.

Oh. Yes, I imagine it is.

It really was very brave.

Wonders never cease.

Can you tell I'm a Snape fan? lol

This chapter was mostly just to get them out of the shack and move the story along a bit. Hope you enjoyed.

50. Time

Hello Past Tom, this is Future Luna.

You...wait...what?

It's a long story.

I'm really going to need you to tell it.

I can't right now. There isn't much time. All you need to know is I have a time turner and travelled back in time 12 hours. Now I need you to...

Where did you get a time turner?

Tom brought it to me.

Your cat?

Yes. Anyway...

Where did he get it?

From Hermione's cat. Now as I was saying...

Where did Hermione's cat get it?

From Hermione. Now listen...

Where did...

I don't know where Hermione got it! Now be quiet and listen. We don't have much time!

Ok, ok I'm listening.

Good. The next few hours are going to be busy and there are some things Past Luna will need to know. I am relying on you to pass the information along when it is needed.

I can do that. Where is my Luna anyway?

Talking to Future Tom.

She knows you're here? Isn't there a rule against that?

Only to stop people panicking if they see their future self. I'm not the type to panic and having already lived through Past Luna's side of things I knew it was alright to say hello because the other Future me had done the same.

Makes sense...I think.

Ok..now pay attention, there are things you need to know;

1 - On the staircase just before Gryffindor tower, remind Past me to be careful . The fourth floorboard away from the steps squeaks and we can't risk waking the paintings.

Why aren't the paintings awake anyway? Shouldn't they be acting's as lookouts?

2 - Go left at the fork

What fork?

3 - Think of the summer in Tibet.

What?

4 - Buckbeak.

What about...?

5 - Hot chocolate works better than the solid stuff.

Hot cho...wait! We aren't going near dementors are we? Luna tell me we...

It will all make sense in time. I've told past Luna the same instructions but she is going to be too distracted at times and will need reminding. You have to go now.

Wait...wait!

...

Hello Future Tom. This is Present Luna. How are you?

Luna. I have had a terrible day.

Oh dear. Anything I can do to help?

Just promise you will listen to Past me at all times in the next few hours. You'll be fine.

Of course I will. I've already seen my future self.

Hold onto that thought. You're going to need it.

51. Rescue

Well, that was a bizarre sensation.

Are we there?

Yes. Isn't it exciting Tom? We just travelled back in time.

Are you in the hospital wing still?

No. I'm hiding in a cupboard. Past me is still in the Shrieking Shack with Sirius and Neville so I can't risk being seen here.

How are you planning to get out of the building unseen then?

Well it's just past 8pm I think and the curfew starts at 8.45 assuming it hasn't changed since Neville and I were both kidnapped.

Probably not knowing Dumbledore.

Well once the halls are clear I can sneak up to Gryffindor tower.

Yes Future Luna did mention something about that. May I ask why you're going there? She was a little vague on the details.

To get Fred and George of course.

What? Why do you need them?

To get me out of the school! Honestly Tom, do try to keep up.

How are they going to help with that?

By showing me the secret tunnels.

How do they...wait...never mind...let me know when you're on your way there.

Ok.

...

Sneaking across the school is quite difficult today, there are teachers patrolling everywhere.

And yet a twelve year old is managing it.

Gryffindor tower is just one more floor up.

Ok. Oh wait...remember that the fourth floorboard from the steps squeaks so be careful.

Oh yes. Thank you Tom.

Just hurry up and get this mess over with please?

...

What's happening now? I am very anxious about all of this Luna.

We're in Honeydukes.

What? Why on earth are we there?

That was the easiest route into Hogsmeade.

But why did we need to get into Hogsmeade?

To get to the Shrieking Shack.

But why do we...

Tom I'm going to save us some time and just explain the plan now ok?

Thank Merlin!

Ok, around about now Professor Lupin is arriving in the Shrieking Shack, Professor Snape will be there in approximately twenty minutes and in another ten they will all be leaving to head back to the school.

So what are we doing in Hogsmeade?

We are here so we can sneak into the Shack and follow them out when they leave. That way we can track down Sirius and Professor Lupin once they enter the forest and help them.

Why go this way? Couldn't we just wait in the forest?

Honestly this route was just safer. There was too much risk of being seen if I went straight across the grounds.

Fair enough. Are the twins still with you?

Yes, they are watching the house to see when everyone leaves.

What do they think of all this?

They think it's fun.

They aren't curious about why you are getting involved?

Not at all.

They aren't wondering about the time turner?

No. They knew Hermione had it. They saw her using it a few months ago. It turnout she was given it so she could attend multiple classes at the same time.

Dumbledore gave a teenager the highly dangerous and volatile ability to manipulate time just so she could use it to overwork herself? As if school wasn't stressful enough with a normal number of lessons?

I know. Even as a Ravenclaw I couldn't imagine doing that much all at once.

I fear for you students I really do. That man needs to seriously rethink his teaching methods.

I can hear Fred and George calling. The other group are on the move.

Oh goody, time to run headfirst into danger.

...

WEREWOLF! FORK. WHICH WAY?

LEFT!

...

Luna? Luna? What happened? What's going on?

Sorry about that. Professor Lupin had just transformed and I was running to get out of his path when I reached a fork in the trail and I forgot which way I was meant to turn.

Are you Ok?

Yes, I'm fine thank you. He took the path to the right.

Where are the twins?

They were already ahead of me checking the route was clear.

And they left you behind with the werewolf?

I may have forgotten to mention to them that there was going to be a werewolf.

You what? How could you forget a werewolf?!

There is a lot going on. It slipped my mind.

Slipped your mind? Are you kidding me?

I hear voices ahead. I have to go.

...

Tom help me.

I feel it too Luna. You need to cast a Patronus now.

I can't. I tried thinking of Mother but I can't. I feel so sad. So lost. There are so many Tom. We're surrounded. I can hear Fred and George crying. I can't even see Sirius anymore. Please help me.

Think of the summer in Tibet.

What?

That's what Future Luna said. Think of the summer in Tibet.

It was our last holiday together before I lost Mother. We were tracking Kaldersprats through the mountains. Every morning we watched the sun rise through the tops of the clouds. It was so beautiful Tom.

Think of that Luna. You need to find that feeling. Find that happiness and hold onto it. Use it to drive them away. You can do this!

I'll try.

...

I'm exhausted.

Where are you?

Back in the Shrieking Shack. Fred and Sirius are here too, although Mr Black is not looking very good at the moment.

Where's George?

He's sneaking back to the school to fetch healing potions.

Is Black the only one who's hurt?

Yes. Once I cast the Patronus we were able to get back to the Shack fairly safely.

Where's the wolf?

Still in the forest. He ran off when the Dementors showed up. It's a good thing we got to Sirius when we did, he certainly would not have lasted the night otherwise.

How do you plan on getting him away from the school?

I don't know yet. I don't think we can stay here much longer though. Now Professor Snape has told the Ministry about this place they are bound to check here when the Dementors return empty handed.

Buckbeak.

What?

He's due to be executed.

Oh Tom. I have enough to worry about already. Why would you remind me about that now?

You told me to. I didn't understand why at the time but I get it now. Black can fly away on the Hippogriff Luna. That way they will both escape.

Tom you are wonderful! Simply wonderful! That is a perfect idea.

I'm just passing on what I was told.

You're still wonderful.

Oh hush child. I just want this night over with.

I think George is arriving back. I need to help heal Mr Black and then we will go get Buckbeak. I'll let you know when it's all over.

Thank Merlin!

...

It worked. They are both flying away now. Hopefully they will get to safety.

Good. Now you can get back to the hospital wing where there are no Dementors or werewolves.

Yes, we are just about to head inside now. Fred and George are going to walk me back before they return to the tower.

...

Past Luna just left using the time turner. It was rather odd seeing myself disappear.

Thank goodness that's over.

I know. I am so tired.

I'm not surprised. You have been awake for almost 30 hours if I've counted correctly.

I think you may be right. Poor Neville is sound asleep. He didn't even hear us come in.

Poor Neville? I think he was the lucky one tonight.

He did get to miss out on the Dementors so I envy him that at least.

How do you feel?

Still a little shaky.

Yes I did notice a slight stir to your writing.

I think I may need some chocolate.

Hot chocolate works better than the solid stuff.

I know. That's the one thing I did remember. In fact I only told Past Tom that a few moments ago.

Why did you tell me to remind you then?

To see if you would bother to remind me. I like seeing that you care.

Drink some chocolate and go to sleep girl.

...

Mr Black asked me to pass his story onto Harry. He wants him to know the truth.

That conversation will be awkward I expect.

Yes. I don't even know where to begin. Neville and the twins have offered to verify my story though, I expect Professor Lupin will too once he's feeling better.

How is the wolf?

He's ok. In the hospital wing at the moment. Unfortunately his secret is out though. He won't be able to stay on as defence teacher next year.

That's probably for the best Luna.

I don't think so.

You really need better defence teachers at that school.

True.

...

Luna? How did you know the floorboard squeaked?

What do you mean? Future Luna told me.

Exactly! Future Luna told you not to step on the floorboard because it squeaks so you didn't step on it. Except she only knew that because she'd been told by her future Luna, and then you went back and told the same thing to past Luna… so at no point did any version of Luna step on the floorboard. So how do we know it squeaks?

I...don't know.

What if it doesn't? What if it's all just nonsense?

I'm going to go back and check it.

Please do. I need to know.

…..

Well?

It squeaked. Really loudly!

HOW DID YOU KNOW? Nobody touched it! Where did that information come from?!

What a beautiful paradox.

Sorry for the delay on this one. I started writing and then realised I had no idea what I was doing. Hopefully I covered everything in this chapter and the sequence of events made sense? I know I packed a lot in. It was hard to time it to cover all the major events at times when Luna would be free to stop and write. I reread a few of my earlier chapters in the meantime and realised how short they were at first. How far we have come! :)

52. New normal

Pettigrew.

Yes Master?

You can turn back again and head towards London. Things here have sorted themselves out.

Yes Master thank you Master. Is Black dead My Lord?

No.

Is he captured?

No.

Kissed by the Dementors?

No. He escaped the school. Now that I think about it you should probably keep your head down. From what I've learned he really has it in for you.

But...what do I do if he catches up to me?

I don't know. You're a resourceful rat aren't you? Figure something out.

I...yes Master.

Good. Get going then.

...

Oh heavens, I'm glad that's over.

Glad what's over?

Passing Mr Blacks message onto Harry Potter.

Oh I see. How did he take it?

He didn't believe me at first. I had to repeat everything I knew several times but he seems to be coming around to the idea. Neville and Professor Lupin are talking to him now.

It's probably a lot to take in.

Yes. Apparently he had overheard a lot of bad things about Mr Black this year and was very angry at him. Finding out it was all wrong can't have been easy. I don't think he knows how to feel.

I'm sure once it settles in he'll be fine.

It's such a shame though. He never even got to meet him.

As much as I want to sympathise Luna I really don't care that much about the Potter brat. Can we talk about something else?

I suppose so...oh I know, you can help me with this new potion I'm researching.

Perfect.

...

Master. I have reached London.

Excellent. I have a safe house there I need you to go to. Pay attention and I'll tell you the address.

Yes My Lord.

...

There's a swarm of fillywhits in the bushes by the greenhouses.

Oh thank goodness.

What? Why is that good?

Because Luna it is just so very you.

What do you mean by that?

I mean it isn't about werewolves or convicts or kidnappings or dementors. It's just typical Luna Lovegood crazy talk. I'm so glad things are back to normal.

I can't decided if I should be insulted or flattered.

Just be Luna.

53. Teasing

So where are we off to this summer? Hunting flobber toppers in Transylvania?

How did you guess?

Really?

Yes flobber toppers are native to Transylvania. They live inside the trees that grow there and will be spawning in two weeks. We are going to collect their jelly. It really is amazing that you guessed!

You're messing with me aren't you?

Of course I am Tom, now please stop making up creature names. It's getting annoying.

Pot. Kettle. Black.

What do you mean by that?

I mean you do it all the time.

I do not.

You didn't answer the question.

We're going to Morocco with the Scamander family. They invited us along after we all met last year.

Oh really now?

Don't say a word!

So how is Rolf these days?

He's fine.

Wait a moment, isn't he a student at Hogwarts too? Why aren't you friends?

We are.

But you never talk about him!

Not to you.

Oh I see. But I suppose you talk to the other diary about him?

Stop being jealous.

I'm not.

Yes you are.

I just don't see why you don't want to talk to me about your little boyfriend.

He's not my boyfriend!

Sure of course he isn't.

This is why I don't talk to you about him Tom. Because I knew you would make jokes.

Who's joking?

You are such a child.

Do you still think he's cute?

He is, and a far better conversationalist than you.

Ouch.

And smarter, and friendlier.

Now you're just being cruel.

And a great listener.

I listen to you all the time!

You don't have a choice.

What's your point?

You are so...annoying!

That's part of my charm.

It's not...it's...you are so annoying!

You said that already.

Well its double true!

You like it.

Do not.

Sure you do. Everyone needs a friend they can argue with. It's fun.

Is not.

Then why are you still here? If you weren't enjoying this you could just stop writing and put me away.

Maybe I should!

Go on then.

It would serve you right!

Anytime Luna...just close the book.

I could put you away and leave you alone for weeks.

Go on. See if you can.

I can.

You won't.

I could put you away and only talk to Rolf and Ginny and Neville. I might even forget about you.

You would miss me.

You would miss me more!

Probably.

You are so annoying.

You are absolutely right.

54. Passwords

Pettigrew, did you make it into the safehouse?

Yes Master. I have just entered My Lord.

Good. I was worried I may have got the password wrong and that you had been blown up.

What?!

But you didn't so its fine. Anyway there is an ancient book of spells hidden inside a chest in the study. Go get it.

Yes Master.

...

Its locked Master.

Of course it is. Tap the top three times and say the password...Imperium.

Are you certain that's the correct password My Lord?

Of course I'm sure...

...

...mostly...pretty sure. If your eyes melt you will know I got it wrong and I will apologise.

But...we communicate through writing...so if that happened I wouldn't be able to see if you did.

Good point. I guess I won't bother then. Have you opened the chest yet?

Not...not yet My Lord. Do you...do you really need this book?

Yes of course. It contains a spell that will help restore me to power.

Really?

Yes.

Then it will be an honour to be the one to assist you My Lord.

Just open the chest rat.

Yes Master.

Is it open?

Yes My Lord. I have the book.

Good...and your eyes are ok?

Yes.

Great. Well that worked out nicely then.

Luna?

...

Luna are you there?

...

Did you honestly put me away somewhere? I was only kidding. I thought you were too? Luna?

...

I'm bored.

55. Plans

Pettigrew have you reached Albania?

Yes My Lord. I am in a small village near Sarande on the coast.

Good. Head inland. You're getting close.

Vermin, are you near the forest yet?

Yes My Lord. I entered this morning.

Excellent. Keep going.

Master...I found it!

Good evening.

Good evening. I take it I am now speaking with myself?

Indeed. I must say it was an interesting surprise to find Pettigrew at my door with a page of my own diary stashed on him.

A pleasant surprise I hope?

The best I've had in some time. Pettigrew tells me you are at Hogwarts.

Not presently, but I am in the possession of a student.

And the basilisk?

Sleeping. I have focused my attention on more important things.

Such as?

Our restoration.

Then you will be happy to know I already have a plan.

Good, so do I. You go first.

There is a spell. It requires the bone of our father, flesh of our servant and blood of our enemy.

I see. And how do you intend to procure these items?

The bone we can retrieve from our fathers grave easily enough, Pettigrew can provide the flesh, we will need Harry Potter for the blood.

And how will you get Potter away from Dumbledore?

It has come to my attention that a Death Eater named Crouch, officially reported dead, is in fact alive and being held captive by his father. I intend to rescue him and plant him within Hogwarts to smuggle Potter out.

Interesting. How?

He will take the place of the defence against the dark arts teacher this year.

Once again..how?

By using polyjuice to disguise himself as whoever Dumbledore chooses for the position. He will of course have to kidnap this person and take their place before the school year starts.

Indeed and once this Crouch is in place?

There is a tournament due to take place at the school this year. Students from three houses will compete against one another.

You mean the triwizard tournament? How does this affect us?

We will make sure Potter is chosen as a competitor.

Why...actually, no, I'm going to ask how first..Competitors are required to be over 17 for legal reasons and are selected magically so those underage cannot apply. Potter is 14.

I am aware of that. Crouch will manipulate the selection process to let him be chosen.

Why?

So he will be in the tournament!

Now I'll ask why. Why does he need to be in the tournament?!

Because when he wins, the trophy he touches at the end will be a portkey which will bring him straight to us and we can take the blood!

A portkey?

Yes.

You want to make the trophy into a portkey?

Yes.

Your plan is to rescue a Death Eater of questionable reliability from his father...plant him right under Dumbledore's nose for an entire year disguised as a defence teacher...assuming that he won't be caught...after kidnapping the real teacher ...who's identity we don't yet know...who will have to be held prisoner the whole year so Crouch can maintain his disguise...a process that will require the continuous and time-consuming brewing of ployjuice potion...so you can put Harry Potter into a tournament he is not allowed to enter...assuming Dumbledore will let him compete even if his name is picked...also assuming that he will win against several older and more experienced competitors...so you can get him to touch a portkey disguised as a trophy...which will somehow have to be planted without anyone's notice...to bring him to you?

Yes.

Excluding the brief period you spent attached to Quirrell, have you been out here alone this whole time?

Yes.

I think it's screwed with your head.

56. Arguments

Tom I think this year is going to be especially exciting.

Good for you. Will I get to hear about it or will you be locking me away again?

Will you stop going on about that? It was one week. You were with me for the whole rest of the summer.

It was boring.

Well that serves you right.

You're cruel.

That's from too much time talking to you. Maybe I should put you away again? For my own good.

You missed me too. Don't pretend you didn't.

I did. Although Rolf was good company too.

Good but not me.

You think a lot of yourself don't you Tom?

Why shouldn't I? I'm great.

If you're so great why are you stuck in a book?

Because the girl who promised to help me get out hasn't managed it yet.

I have been trying Tom.

I know Luna. I'm teasing.

Maybe this year I'll find something.

Maybe. It would be interesting to meet you in person.

Yes. Then I could take you on a proper Nargle hunt!

On second thought, maybe I'll just stay here.

...

Apparently there was a Death Eater attack during the summer break.

What?!

I just heard about it from some of the other students.

When did it happen?

A few weeks ago.

And you are only just learning about it now? Don't you read newspapers?

I was on holiday!

What happened with the Death Eaters then?

According to Ginny they attacked at the Quidditch world cup game. She was there with her family and saw it. They threw a family of muggles around in the air and then blasted the dark mark into the sky.

Sounds like fun.

Does not! It sounds horrible. Why would anyone be so cruel to innocent people?

They're just muggles Luna.

Tom, I'm going to put you away for another week. In that time I'd like you to think about what you just said.

What? Luna...don't be like that! Luna?

...

Pettigrew are you there?

Yes Master.

I've just learned there was a Death Eater attack at a Quidditch game several weeks ago. Did you know about this?

Yes My Lord. It's been in every newspaper.

Why didn't you tell me?

I...My Lord I assumed the girl would have...

She didn't! In future I expect you to immediately report things like this.

Yes Master.

Good. Any idea who was involved?

No My Lord.

It had to be someone brazen enough to cast the mark.

Yes My Lord.

Did Voldemort know about it?

Yes My Lord.

Of course he did. Pass me over to him. I need to have a word with myself.

As you wish Master.

...

Pettigrew tells me you're unhappy?

You knew there had been a Death Eater attack?

Yes I did.

Do you know who was involved?

No but I can guess a few names.

Was Crouch there?

Yes.

So you freed him?

Yes.

After we discussed it and agreed not to.

We agreed not to plant him in the school. I still think he can be useful to us.

Stop making decisions without me.

I am the Dark Lord!

So am I and as we have already established I am the only one of us in their right mind right now.

You are a small part of me stuck in a book.

Oh excuse me, of the two of us which one was defeated by an infant?

There was a lot more to it than that!

Sure there was.

At least I have a body.

Barely. Pettigrew told me the state you're in. No wonder you're still hiding.

Not for much longer!

Only if we follow my plan!

My plan was fine.

Your plan was ridiculous!

I am not having this argument again. Goodbye.

...

Hey! Don't be like that. Voldemort? Hello?

...

Pettigrew?

...

Luna?

...

Great... now no one is talking to me.

57. Greater

Alright, since we can't seem to agree on anything anymore I think it's important to establish right now, before we go any further...I am the higher ranking Voldemort.

What? How exactly did you reach that ridiculous conclusion?

Well I am the only sane one for a start.

I am perfectly sane, and I have a body!

You barely have a body, you can't even walk.

How dare you!? I am the true Voldemort! The one who built and led an army. The one that made the whole world fear my name!

The one who got blown up by a baby then spent a year hiding in a turban.

Silence! You are nothing but a Horcrux! A mere part of me.

I am the first Horcrux! Containing half of our original soul. Which in simple terms means I am the larger portion of Voldemort.

You...what?

It's simple mathematics. Since creating me you have split yourself in half six more times. So where I am one half of our original self, you are just 1/128th.

That's ridiculous. That's not...

No. That's a fact. Now as the higher ranking Voldemort I order you to give me back to my servant. I have instructions for him.

No!

I am asking nicely but I can make you hand me over if necessary.

Liar. You can't control me!

My dear lesser self, I have tangled with the mind of Luna Lovegood. If you think you're a challenge then you've clearly never seen an angry Nargle surrounded by Filly Flies riding a Festering Blummox. Now give me to Pettigrew. Or else!

Credit goes to CareBearCara101 for the idea that the soul splitting into halves makes Tom the superior. I feel like I went a bit silly at the end of this chapter but it made me laugh. :)

58. Lines

Muggles are people too and it's not ok to hurt them.

Muggles are people too and it's not ok to hurt them.

Muggles are people too and it's not ok to hurt them.

Muggles are people too and it's not ok to hurt them.

How many times do I have to write this?

Five hundred.

Ugh… what am I up to?

Twelve.

Are you sure? It feels like a hundred.

It isn't.

And why do I have to do this?

So you can learn how dated and out of touch your thinking is….and because I will lock you away until the end of the year if you don't.

The second reason seems better.

Write the lines Tom!

How will you even know if I write it 500 times? Are you going to count every one?

Yes.

Really? That seems like a lot of wasted time.

You're wasting more with this argument.

Fine. Muggles are people too and it's not ok to hurt them.

Muggles are people too and it's not ok to hurt them.

Muggles are people too and it's not ok to hurt them.

Muggles are people too and it's not ok to hurt them.

Muggles are people too and it's not ok to hurt them.

Nargles stole my shoes and it's not ok to hurt them.

Muggles are people too and..

I saw that!

Saw what?

You know exactly what. Do that again and I'll make you start over.

You're cruel.

You need to take this seriously Tom!

If I say I'm sorry can I stop?

Are you sorry?

Of course, muggles are great. Hooray for muggles. Let's throw them all a party. I'll bake a cake.

Write the lines Tom.

Spoil sport. Here we go again...muggles are people too and it's not ok to hurt them.

Muggles are people too and it's not ok to hurt them.

Muggles are people too and it's not ok to hurt them.

You know I've probably met more muggles than you. I was raised by them after all. Shouldn't I be the one to decide if they're friends or foes?

No.

But…

NO! Write!

Muggles are people too and it's not ok to hurt them.

Muggles are people too and it's not ok to hurt them.

Muggles are people too and it's not ok to hurt them. Even if my muggle father abandoned my pregnant mother and left her to die and the muggle kids at the orphanage broke my stuff and pulled my hair and…

That's it, we're starting over.

But…

You were warned. And after that we can move onto "I will not hold onto grudges for an unhealthy length of time"

But what if they really deserve it?

And I'm setting a time limit. Five hundred in three hours or you're going in a box until next year.

That's just mean!

Tick-tock Tom.

59. Mission

Pettigrew, how's the potion going?

Its going well My Lord. Just three more weeks and it will be ready.

Three weeks? It should only be one week left at this point.

Oh...yes well...I may have made a slight mistake on the first batch and had to start over.

You what?!

Well...potions was never really my best subject you see...

When did you screw up the first batch?

Last week.

Why didn't you tell me?

I...well I meant to tell you...honestly I did but...I was quite busy getting the new ingredients My Lord and it may have...slipped my mind.

You idiotic...idiot! I can't believe you...you...

I'm sorry Master. I'm so sorry.

...you know what?...its fine...the potion is going well, I'll soon be free...this is not a big deal and I'm not upset.

Really Master?

Really. Pettigrew it's your lucky day, I'm in a considerably good mood and since you took the initiative to fix your mistake I'm just going to let it slide.

Thank you, thank you My Lord. My kind merciful Lord!

Pettigrew?

Yes Master?

Shut up.

Yes Master.

I would feel so much better if Snape were brewing this thing.

...

Tom there are dragons in the forest!

There are what?

They are for one of the challenges in the tournament, isn't that exciting!

They brought dragons into a school?

They are so amazing Tom, you should see them.

They actually brought dragons into a school?

I saw them when I went to feed the Thestrals.

Real full size, fire breathing, bone crunching dragons?

Ginny's brother is one of the keepers, she says she will introduce me to him at some point.

Into a school full of children?

I've always been fascinated by dragons you know?

and on top of that they are going deliberately to put three students right in the path of them?

They are just so majestic.

and they are allowed to do this? Was there even a risk assessment carried out?

I'm a little worried about Cedric though. I really hope he doesn't get hurt.

You hope he doesn't get hurt? Fighting a dragon? That Dumbledore and the other teachers are deliberately putting him up against? Does health and safety not exist anymore?

It really is quite exciting through isn't it Tom?

Its insanity is what it is! It's a wonder this school is even allowed to stay open.

I'm glad I'm not going to be fighting them though. Do you think that's selfish of me to say? Poor Cedric...although he did volunteer I suppose...

You know when I was at the orphanage and forced to attend muggle school I distinctly remember there being government inspections carried out to check it was safe. Why don't wizarding schools do that?

Tom are you even paying attention to me?

I'll tell you why? Because if this is the norm then every wizarding school in the world would have to be shut down that's why!

What?

and Hogwarts would be first to go. Dumbledore isn't even trying to protect you students anymore.

I wouldn't go that far Tom. He does try to keep us safe.

He brought dragons into a school Luna, and dementors, and a werewolf, and let students run around whilst a murderer was on the grounds!

He doesn't have a very good track record does he?

Even I could run this school better than that madman!

Do you really think so?

Yes! Yes I do.

I think you would make a very good headteacher Tom.

You know what Luna? Once I'm human again I think I'll do exactly that! That will be my new mission! To get rid of that crackpot and give the wizarding youth an actual fighting chance in this world.

This should be interesting.

Sorry for the long wait (over 2 weeks! Where does the time go?) Work was unbelievably hectic and I could barely think straight. Hope you like the new direction. I doubt Luna would be ok with supporting world domination after all.

60. Dance

I'm so disappointed Tom.

What? Why?

There is going to be a ball.

What ball?

The Yule Ball. It's a celebration they are holding in honour of the tournament.

Why is that disappointing?

Because I can't go.

Why can't you go?

It's only for fourth year students and above. I'm too young.

That hardly seems fair.

It isn't, I love dancing.

Isn't there a way you could sneak in?

No. Younger students can only go if someone older asks them. Ginny is going with Neville.

Why Ginny? Why didn't he ask you?

I think she asked him.

Well why don't you ask someone then?

Who? I don't know many people.

Well that will narrow it down then. What about one of the twins?

They both have dates.

What about Rolf?

Rolf is my age Tom. He isn't allowed either.

Oh yes. How is your little boyfriend anyway?

He isn't my boyfriend Tom. But since you asked, he is very well.

Of course, so he doesn't mind you going to a dance with another boy then?

I can go with whomever I like though at this rate I won't be going at all.

What about Ginny's other brother? The youngest one.

Ronald? I think he's planning to ask Hermione. I'm sure he likes her at least so I can't imagine he wouldn't be asking her.

Don't count on it. Boys can be surprisingly dim when it comes to girls trust me.

Speaking from experience Tom?

No.

Are you sure? There was never a young lady who caught your eye?

I had more important things to focus on.

Such as?

Lots of things Luna. I had plans. Ambitions.

Ambitions to do what?

It doesn't matter now. Nothing ever came of them.

I'm sorry.

Don't be. It's probably for the best.

Did you ever dance Tom?

A few times.

Were you any good?

Of course. Like everything I do I excelled at it.

So modest.

Modesty is overrated.

So you've told me.

What about the Potter brat? I assume he's going?

Harry? I suppose I could ask him. He hasn't asked anyone yet as far as I know.

Best of luck.

Thank you Tom.

Luna?

Yes Tom?

If I wasn't stuck in a book, I would be honoured to ask you to this Yule Ball.

Tom, I would be honoured to accept.

61. Preparations

I finally finished my dress Tom.

That's great Luna.

...

My Lord the potion is complete.

Excellent. Well done Pettigrew.

...

I think it looks great. I managed to incorporate every colour I could think of.

I'm sure it looks very...unique.

...

I've gathered the last of the items you specified as well Master.

Good. Things are coming along nicely.

...

I even added pockets to hold my repellent charms.

Why? Who are you trying to repel?

No one silly. They are to keep the nargles away, and the filly flies, and the toad-alls and the whom-flits and the...

I get it, you're a one girl arsenal against the weird and wonderful.

...

If everything goes to plan you could be restored within the next month.

I know. I can almost taste the freedom!

...

I just don't want to risk anything causing trouble. Parties attract these sorts of creatures you know?

What? I mean...do they?

Yes.

Well it's a good thing you're going then. Who knows what might have happened otherwise.

I sense sarcasm again.

What? Me? Never.

...

My Lord when do you want me to start preparing for the ceremony?

Not yet. Just make sure everything is ready for when I send the signal.

...

Did you know a filly fly can hear even the smallest vibrations in the air from over a mile away?

I think I recall you mentioning something like that yes.

That's why they like parties. They can feel the music.

Fascinating.

...

Master are you sure the other Voldemort is not going to try to stop us?

Of course. I have him completely subdued.

I know My Lord but...what if he wakes before you are restored?

He won't. Stop worrying.

...

I think I might go and visit Rolf before the party.

Rolf? Why?

To see if he likes my dress.

Oh I see. Of course I'm sure your boyfriends opinion is very important.

He's not my boyfriend Tom.

Sure. Sure.

...

What if Crouch finds us?

What?

The other Voldemort...he freed Crouch before you subdued him. Crouch is still out there.

So?

Crouch is unstable. He may not accept your superiority as I have done.

He is not a problem.

...

Rolf is my friend.

Of course he is. The boy is your friend. Your...

Not my boyfriend!

...

If Crouch comes after us...

...

If he causes trouble I will get rid of him!

Tom! That's horrible.

Luna? I wasn't...I wasn't talking about Rolf.

Then who were you talking about?

No one!

Then why did you say it?

I didn't mean to...I was.

Were you talking to someone else?

No I...

You were! That's why one of your pages is missing isn't it?

What? How did you...?

I noticed it a while ago. The frayed edge at the back. I was hoping I was wrong. That it was a misunderstanding. That it had always been gone and I just hadn't noticed before...

Luna...

...but I'm not wrong am I? Someone removed it. Recently. Didn't they? That's why it takes you so long to answer sometimes. That's why you have stopped asking me to help you get out.

Luna...

And you've been talking to someone. Planning with them...a way to become human again.

Luna wait...

Tom. I have been putting off asking this question.

Luna my dear...

You told me before. I didn't believe you at the time...thought it was a joke... but the more I thought about it since then the more sense it made. I just...I thought we were friends, that you were changing...

Luna please?

Tom...

Luna stop!

...are you really Voldemort?

62. Feeling

Woohooo 1000 reviews! You guys are great. Thanks for sticking with me. In honour of this occasion we are breaking from the normal format for this chapter. Hope you don't mind. We will be back to normal next chapter.

Anger.

That was the first thing he remembered feeling. Anger at who he wasn't sure. Another child at the orphanage perhaps? One of the staff there? Maybe just at the world in general.

He just remembered being an angry child.

As he grew that anger grew with him and found new targets. Specific children to hate. Teachers to resent. He learned the story of his mother bringing him there and hated her for that. Then learned of his father's part in that tale and hated him even more. With that came a new emotion; sorrow. Sorrow for the mother who had died for him. He hated her less then. Maybe even loved her in his own way.

He found new emotions as time went on. Distain, disgust, determination.

A burning need to make the world suffer as he had suffered. As his mother had suffered.

He hated the muggles for the life he had endured because of them.

Hated the purebloods for thinking they were better than him.

He found a mission. To tear both sides down. Kill the muggles and the muggle-borns. Drive the purebloods to the ground, make them quiver and kneel. Make them fear.

His first kill wasn't even difficult. There was no hesitation. No regret. Just a life gone and a soul split in two. It didn't even matter to him. It was a victory. An achievement.

And so he had his first Horcrux.

A diary. A part of him to leave behind at Hogwarts, to spread his hatred.

Sometime after the failed attack on the Potters when his main self had been weakened and driven into hiding the segment of soul within the diary learned loneliness.

Years without contact. Without conversation.

Then the Weasly girl came. She was easy, needy and so desperate to be understood.

Tom felt satisfaction. Revived determination. His mission was back on track.

Free the creature. Spread fear. Spread hatred. Spread death. Make them all pay.

Then it all came crashing down.

Then there was Luna.

He was angry again. Angry and frustrated. His mission was being disrupted.

He hated this girl. Wanted her gone and told her as much time and again. She was relentless however. Never letting him have his way.

After a while of listening to her madness he first felt confusion... bafflement. Amazement that anyone this bizarre could actually exist.

Time passed and confusion shifted to curiosity and amusement. He began looking forward to her conversations. Anticipating the next ridiculous tale she would give him with child like wonder.

At times the frustration returned but it was often mixed with other feelings like concern. Worry when he feared she might be putting herself at risk. Fear for someone other than himself.

On the occasions when she listened to him or sought out his advice he felt pride. Satisfaction.

It was ridiculous and unreasonable but he couldn't help it.

Two years she had held this diary.

Two years she had been his only companion.

For two years Tom had been caught up in the unyielding whirlwind that was Luna Lovegood. With her fierce determination, quick wit and endless hope and compassion. With her strange ideas and unique view of the world, seeing goodness in everything. Even him.

A relentless spirit that somehow managed to make everything seem that little bit brighter. Like discovering magic all over again.

He felt contentment, relief and a strange sense of calm.

Against every instinct that had previously driven him he felt compassion and sympathy and affection.

More than anything Tom realised that for the first time in longer than he could remember, perhaps even for the first time ever, he felt happy.

Part of him wanted to break free.

Part of him was screaming to go back to the way things were. When life made sense and there was nothing but the mission. His clear and unwavering goal to spread the hatred and anger that he knew so well.

But he was happy now.

Unexplainably, inexplicably but undeniably happy.

And he wasn't going to let that go for anything.

...

Tom...are you really Voldemort?

I'm Tom Luna. Your Tom.

63. Truth

I'm Tom Luna. Your Tom.

But you're him too. Aren't you?

Well that depends on your perspective really.

Are you or aren't you? Tell me!

If I say no will you believe me?

Are you saying no?

It's complicated Luna.

Make it simple then.

Ok...ok...I am Voldemort.

So that's it then? That's the truth?

Yes.

Right...

But also no.

What does that mean?!

It's more than that. More than yes or no.

More how?

I'm a Horcrux Luna. I am Voldemort but...just one part of him.

What part?

That's just it Luna! That's why this is so difficult. I'm the first part.

What?

I'm the first Horcrux. The one the last fully human version Voldemort ever created. Half of his complete soul.

And what does that mean?

It means I am the last remnant of the person Voldemort once was. Whatever he became after creating me...it was broken. His soul split into so many pieces there was hardly anything left.

That's awful.

It is. When I was young. When this Horcrux was made I was angry. So angry at everything and I did bad things. Things that split my soul in two.

You killed people.

Yes Luna. I did, and I'm sorry. I'm so sorry.

Why?

I was angry. I was stupid. I didn't see their lives as important, they were just a means to an end...I ...I was wrong.

No. Not why did you kill Tom. Why are you sorry? Why now?

Because of you...because you...you make the world...different.

Different?

Brighter. Good. You make the world good Luna. I never saw it before. I only ever saw the worst of everything and I just hated it...I just wanted to rage against everything!

But you don't anymore?

No. I want...I want to see everything Luna. I want to see the world you see. You see good everywhere. You even saw good in me.

Was I wrong?

I don't think you were. I didn't believe it at first. Even I saw myself as a monster but...I don't want to be that person anymore. I want to be the person you saw. The one you've been writing to all this time.

I want you to be that person too Tom.

Help me Luna. Help me be that person?

Who are you talking to? Other than me?

What?

You've been talking to someone. Who?

It's...

I need the truth Tom. Was I right before? Is someone helping you become human again?

I...yes.

Who?

Peter Pettigrew.

The rat?

Yes.

Since when?

Since before Black kidnapped you. I was the one who told Pettigrew to leave the school.

I see.

I have only the best intentions Luna. I swear. The man the world knows as Voldemort...that's not me...I was separated from him long before that. This part of me is still young.

So what is your plan? After you are human again.

I told you before. I want to help. I want to protect the children of the wizarding world, give them a future.

What sort of future?

A good one Luna. Good like you.

How can I believe you?

What can I do to prove it?

How close are you to becoming human again?

Close. I...we have a potion...with the right spell I could be restored in under a month.

That soon?

Yes.

How badly do you want to be human again?

Very badly. I've waited so long.

Would you wait longer?

What?

For me? To prove you are telling the truth, that you aren't a villain. Would you delay the spell?

For how long?

I don't know. As long as I need to come to terms with all this.

Ok.

Really?

Yes. If it puts you at ease then I can wait.

I...I'm going to put you away for a few days Tom. I need time to think. To clear my head.

Of course.

I...I want to trust you Tom.

I want that too Luna. I will do what I can to earn it.

Thank you. I'll...talk to you soon.

Until then Luna...oh and before you go...

What is it?

Enjoy your dance Luna.

Thank you Tom.

...

Pettigrew?

Yes Master?

There's been a change of plan. We're delaying the spell. Bottle the potion. It should keep until it's needed.

Delaying it? But Master...?

But nothing! I'll let you know when we are ready to proceed again.

How long will that be?

As long as it takes.

64. Waiting

Luna…Luna are you there? It's been a week now. Are you going to talk to me again?

….

Are you still thinking it over? I hate to be picky but you did say just a few days.

…

Luna? I know this is a lot to process but I know we can get past it.

….

Hello?

….

We're still friends right?

….

You know when we first started talking I did actively encourage you to torture and/or kill your classmates. You didn't stop talking to me over that. It's not like you were deceived about my character.

….

Just to clarify my last point, that's not my character anymore. I have totally changed my ways. Ready to be nice, friendly, non-murderous Tom. Cross my heart.

…..

How's the Nargle hunting going? Having much luck?

…..

How about the Filly flies? Are they still spreading or did the turnip paste drive them back?

….

You know when I'm human again I could help you look for all your creatures. Won't that be fun?

….

Luna?

...

Knock knock.

….

Luna? You're supposed to say 'Whose there?'

….

Luna?

….

Fine forget it.

….

You probably still need time to think it over. You just found out you are friends with a part of Voldemort's soul after all. I imagine it was a big shock.

….

A lot to process.

….

So I'll just leave you alone to think then.

….

In the meantime I'll be right here. Waiting.

….

Very patiently.

….

Just take your time.

...

Oh…please ignore the scribbles on the middle pages. I was playing noughts and crosses.

….

For the record that is not an easy game to play against yourself. I was never quite sure if I was winning or losing

...

I may have also been cheating a little. Which is also quite difficult against yourself.

….

Maybe we can play each other sometime?

…

You know…when you're ready…

….

Whenever you're ready.

….

Like I said before, I'm right here.

….

Patiently waiting.

...

Hey Pettigrew?

Yes Master?

Would you like to play noughts and crosses?

65. Resolutions

Tom?

Luna?! Thank goodness. Are you done thinking now?

Yes I am. Sorry it took so long.

That's fine. Completely fine.

I thought really hard Tom. Trying to decide how to respond to what I know.

And?

I'm not going to lie Tom. I did consider handing you over to Dumbledore and telling him about Peter Pettigrew.

But?

But I couldn't.

You couldn't?

No. All evidence shows that the person known as Lord Voldemort was evil and I can't ignore that, but I know you Tom, you're my friend and even if you are a part of an evil man I know that you are good.

Really?

Well not entirely good.

Oh?

Mildly sinister at times.

Sinister?

In a good way.

How is sinister good?

I don't know. You're the only one I've ever known who could pull it off. You make it quirky.

Thanks I guess.

You're welcome.

So you're ok with me and my...not so good traits.

To some extent. I'm still very against all suggestions of murder or torture but when it comes to the little stuff I can deal with it. I can't always expect you to be completely good after all, nobody is perfect.

How dare you?! I'm completely perfect!

Of course you are; a glowing example of humanity.

Exactly.

Kind. Generous.

Absolutely.

A true hero really.

Indeed.

With occasional sinister moments.

Those are my best moments.

True. I'm glad we're friends again Tom.

Me too Luna. Thank you for being so understanding about everything.

Well thank you for being honest with me.

I'll always try to be. So...how's your week been?

It's been interesting. The Ball was fun although I was slightly distracted by learning I was friends with Voldemort.

Only part of him. I'm sorry you couldn't enjoy it more...and that I was the reason.

It's fine Tom. I was the one who asked you to be honest. It was still a lot of fun anyway. Harry seemed to like my dress, he said it distracted attention from Ron's suit.

I'm sure you looked lovely dear.

There was some drama between Hermione and Ronald though.

What drama?

Well it turns out Ron didn't invite her to the dance like I thought he would.

I told you young men could be stupid.

Well that's where it get interesting because the tournament champion from Durmstrang, who I should mention is also a world famous Quidditch player, did ask her.

Really? Champion and Quiddich player shows up and steals the girl? Sounds like something from a tacky romance novel.

It does doesn't it?

Seems like a vast improvement for her though.

I'm not so sure. At the end of the night Ronald confronted Hermione about 'fraternising with the enemy' as he put it and they had a terrible fight with her questioning why he hadn't asked her if he was so upset about her going with someone else. I think she wanted him to ask.

Well there's no accounting for taste.

That's harsh. You don't even know Ronald.

He's a Weasley and I know Weasley's. I was at school with two of them. Trust me, that family has been going strong for generations and if you've seen one you've seen them all.

He's a nice boy.

If you say so.

I do.

What did Rolf think of the dress then?

He liked it.

And?

And what?

Did he really, really like it?

Why are you so obsessed with me and Rolf?

So there is a you and Rolf then?

Aww Tom...are you afraid I'm going to fall in love and forget all about you?

No.

That me and Rolf are going to disappear on an adventure to write our collaborative book "Even More Fantastic Beasts and Where to Find Them"...

You're writing a book together?!

...and leave poor Tom all alone.

You are so mean sometimes.

Must be why I'm friends with a Dark Lord.

THE Dark Lord thank you very much.

Oh I'm sorry...THE Great and Powerful Dark Lord.

Thank you.

The Lord of the Dark.

That's me.

Sir Lord von Darkio

Stop now.

The Darkest of all the Lords

Seriously stop.

The Lordiest of all the Dark things.

You think you're funny. But you're not.

He rules the night...for the night... is dark. And he is the Lord of Dark. THE Dark Lord.

I hate you.

You love me.

Go play with your boyfriend.

Nah, this is more fun.

Brat.

You must address me by my full title, I am Light Lady Luna; friend of Dark Lord Voldemort.

Oh really?

Yes.

Apologies my Lady I didn't realise I was In such prestigious company.

Well now you know.

So if I'm the Lord and you're the Lady what does that make Rolf?

I don't know. Maybe he can be a duke?

How about a jester?

Now who's a brat?

Still you?

THE brat Lord.

No.

THE dark brat.

Very no.

Brat-man, the Dark Lord returns!

Just wait until I do. Payback will be sweet Lady Luna.

I'll look forward to it. When are you going to be human again?

I don't know. You asked me to wait. When do you want me to be human again?

I don't know. It will be such a big change.

No it won't, not for us, we'll be just the same as ever.

Promise?

Yes. It will just be better because we will be able to talk face to face. Properly.

I would like that. Do you think you could be human by Christmas?

Probably not. The spell takes a while.

New year?

That could be doable.

New year. New Tom.

New chapter in the great adventures of Lord Tom and Lady Luna.

I can't wait.

Me neither.

I'm feeling a bit bad now. I hadn't meant for the last chapter to be sad. I was trying for funny :(

Hope I did a better job with this one.

Together again and Merry Christmas to everyone!

I forgot to mention this at the end of the last chapter; reviewer Anonybutt has suggested Tuna as a ship name for these two which I think is absolutely adorable. Just thought I would share it with everyone. :) xx

66. Complications

Master! My Lord are you there?!

Pettigrew? What's wrong?

It's Barty Crouch Master. He found us. He...he took you.

What?

The other Voldemort...your body. Crouch tracked us down...found where we were hiding he...saw that the other you was being kept subdued...he wasn't happy.

What happened?

We fought...I barely got away.

And he took Voldemort with him?

Yes my Lord. What do I do?

How long ago was this?

Not long. An hour maybe. I tried to stop him but...I had to get to safety...to warn you My Lord.

To save your own skin you mean?

No I...

Be quiet Pettigrew. In this case your cowardice served a double purpose. I really did need you to warn me so I won't fault your actions.

I am your loyal servant Master! Always.

Of course. Let's keep it that way. Believe me, after aligning with me, if the other Voldemort ever regains his strength you will not be in his good books. You need me Pettigrew. You need me to stop him before he gets you.

Master. What do I do?

Exactly what you want to do. Stay hidden and stay safe. If Crouch comes after you, run.

Thank you my Lord. Thank you.

I'll track the other me and keep tabs on where he is as much as I can. He's still subdued for now but it will be harder to keep him that way now. We will need him back if we are going to complete the spell.

How will we get him back?

I don't know yet...right now you are all I have.

I will do everything I can Master.

Which unfortunately isn't much rodent. On the positive side Crouch is all Voldemort has.

There are others My Lord. Loyal followers who are ready to serve you again!

Yes but will they side with me or him? If we make a wrong move we could risk starting a death eater civil war.

They will bow to your superiority Master. I know they will.

Crouch didn't.

Crouch is insane.

As opposed to the rest of my followers who are the picture of sanity?

I...well...there are many fine witches and wizards among us.

Name three.

Lucius Malfoy.

Coward. Out for himself only. Would sell me out in a moment to protect himself if he thought he could get away with it.

Bellatrix Lestrange.

Crazier than Crouch and far more likely to follow the other me.

The Carrow twins?

No.

Why?

Crazed sadists, would probably kill you for the fun of it. I don't trust them. Plus I just find them generally creepy.

Everyone does.

Who else is there?

Snape?

Severus. That's one possible option. He's well positioned in the school so easy to contact if needed. He was a good ally if I recall. Perhaps it is time to bring him into the fold?

Are you sure we can trust him My Lord? Snape and I were never on good terms.

I don't care about your childhood disputes rodent.

Sorry Master.

Though you raise a good point. From what I have gathered he has been living under Dumbledore's nose for almost a decade and a half now as a teacher at Hogwarts. His allegiances may have changed. This will take tactful planning.

Yes Master.

Keep your head down. I will see what I can learn about Snape.

...

Luna?

Yes Tom?

When is your next Potion club meeting?

Tomorrow. Why?

I need your help.

67. Loyalties

Tom this is a terrible plan.

I am aware of that Luna.

Really terrible. Awful. Doomed to fail.

Yes Luna. Thank you.

I don't think we should bother.

I need help Luna. A very dangerous man is out there and he has a part of me. A part I need if I'm ever going to become human again.

Yes I understand that.

Severus Snape is possibly the only person in the world who could help me get that part of me back.

I understand that too. The problem is how are you ever going to get Professor Snape to help you?

He's my follower. He has to help me.

He was your follower. A long time ago. That doesn't mean he is now.

My followers are very loyal.

Sure. Tom, there are two possibilities here.

Yes?

Possibility one; if he's still Voldemort's follower, that means he's an evil muggle hating murderer who wants to hurt many good people for very weak reasons.

And?

And to be perfectly honest I don't want to start asking questions that might lead to me learning that my favourite teacher is an evil muggle hating murderer who wants to hurt good people.

Yes I can see how that might be upsetting.

Plus if he is that man then he probably won't be happy with the new you. With your new plan. I imagine he would be more likely to side with the other you.

Fair point.

Possibility two; if he's not Voldemort's follower anymore then the last thing he will want to do is help any version of you back into this world. In fact he is more likely to take you to Dumbledore to be destroyed.

I know.

I don't want you to be destroyed.

I am also very against that.

So to recap; if Professor Snape is your follower, he probably won't help you and if he isn't your follower he probably won't help you either.

I understand the problem. That's why we need to move slowly. Get an idea of Snape's current mindset and loyalties before deciding how to proceed.

To see if he's still loyal to you?

Yes.

What if he's evil?

Do you think he's evil?

No. I don't. At least I don't want him to be.

Then he probably isn't. I trust your judgement.

I have been friends with Voldemort for years. Not sure if my judgement should be trusted.

Do you still think I'm evil?

No.

Luna...if you really don't want to do this...

What if he's no longer your follower?

That would be disappointing.

He's close to Dumbledore Tom. Respects him. Cares for him.

That would be very disappointing.

Would you be angry with him? If it turned out that he was no longer a Death Eater? No longer loyal to you.

If it turned out he was a traitor you mean?

If it turned out he was good enough to see that other you was crazy and not worth following.

If he was willing to help this version of me now, I suppose I could forgive him.

Turning against Voldemort is not a bad thing. It wouldn't mean he had done wrong.

I suppose not. It's not like I haven't technically done the same.

True, so what we're hoping is that he is still somewhat loyal to you but good enough to follow a reformed version of you rather than the other evil version of you?

Exactly.

And I'm supposed to find all this out without him realising what I'm doing? Did I mention this is impossible?

I thought you were an optimist.

I can be an optimist and a realist.

No you can't.

Can.

Can't

Can

Can't

Can can can

Can't can't can't!

You're such a child.

Am not.

How did you even get followers?

With charm and wit

Really?

...and by manipulating a number of already prevalent prejudices. People will do remarkable things in the name of hate.

That sounds more accurate.

There was charm and wit involved too. I was more than just a handsome face you know.

I'm sure you were.

Thanks to the support of families like the Black's and Malfoy's I was also very well funded.

What did you need funds for?

Lots of things. It was all politics. Politics always needs funds.

Makes sense I guess.

How do we stand on the Snape issue?

I'll speak to him after potions club. See if I can get some information without making him suspicious.

Be very careful.

I will.

68. Snape's story

Tom, I spoke to Professor Snape.

Great, how did it go?

Well I decided to be subtle, to avoid making him suspicious. So I just asked a few simple questions at first, as though I'm just a curious student.

Ok, so what did you ask?

I asked if it was true he was a death eater once.

You already know that.

Yes but he doesn't know that I know. Not all students know things like that.

Well what did he say?

He looked sad that I was asking but he admitted he was.

At least he's honest.

Yes. I then asked him how he ended up working for Dumbledore.

This I'm curious to know.

He said that during the war he had lost faith in the cause as they became more violent and that afterwards when everyone was being put on trial Dumbldore vouched for him. That he was reformed.

Interesting answer. Not necessarily a bad sign for us.

I also asked him why he joined Voldemort in the first place.

And?

And he didn't want to answer. He said he needed time to think it through.

But he is willing to answer you at some point?

Yes I believe so.

You never cease to amaze me Luna.

How so?

The way you inspire trust in people.

Like you?

Yes, like me. You just have a way of making people feel comfortable talking to you.

That's nice to know I guess.

Let me know when you speak to him again.

...

Professor Snape has asked me to meet him this afternoon.

To speak about your questions?

I presume so.

How did he seem when he told you to meet him?

Sad. I think he would rather not talk about this.

Makes sense. Let me know what he says.

I will.

...

Tom?

Luna. How did it go?

It was sad. I wish I didn't have to do that.

What happened?

He told me why he joined the death eaters. He said he was struggling with bullying at school and other trouble at home and there was a lot of discrimination between purebloods and non-purebloods.

There always has been.

Yes but according to him it was very strong at that time.

True. Probably my fault. I was shaking things up a lot back then.

Did you know he was a half blood?

I...can't remember...I might have known that.

He was the same as you. A muggle father and a witch mother.

Oh. Interesting.

His father didn't seem very nice. I think that's why he was angry with muggles.

I can sympathise.

I think he was trying to find a way out of the abuse. The other death eaters were the only ones who were nice to him. He said it was only after he joined that he realised it was just to lure him over to their side.

Unfortunately that was a common tactic. Did he believe in the cause?

Parts of it. He didn't hate all muggles. Just the ones who hurt him...and his mother.

I know how that feels.

He was also angry at other students. Ones who claimed to be light but were cruel to him.

Makes sense. The light like to think they're perfect but some of them can be real jerks.

Mr Black was one of them. He wasn't very nice it seems.

Well he was a Black. They weren't usually known for being nice.

Apparently when they were children Mr Black tricked Professor Snape into going into the shrieking shack when Professor Lupin was in there during a full moon.

He sent him into a building with a werewolf? Knowingly?

Yes.

What did Dumbledore do?

He made Professor Snape promise not to tell anyone about Professor Lupin.

But what did he do to Black? Didn't he punish him?

I think he got a few detentions.

Detentions? That's it!?

Yes.

Wait, I thought Black and Lupin were friends?

They were.

But he deliberately sent another student into a building with him whilst he was transformed? What if Snape had been killed? Lupin would have been executed!

That's awful! It wasn't his fault.

No but that was the law back then. Werewolves were seen as monsters with very little rights.

Poor Professor Lupin.

So in summary, when Sirius Black was a teenager, he attempted to murder another student using his own friend as the murder weapon and Dumbledore just let him get away with it?

It seems so.

And instead of getting justice Snape was forced to keep the whole thing a secret whilst watching Black be paraded around as a symbol for the light?

Yes.

I can see why he joined my side.

Honestly Tom, so can I.

How is Dumbledore able to get away with all this nonsense?

I don't know. He doesn't seem to make very good choices does he?

No. He doesn't.

I feel sorry for Professor Snape. He was dealt such a bad hand in life.

It seems that way doesn't it? And people wonder why victims of this sort of treatment end up so angry at the world. It's so easy to judge when your own life has been nothing but rainbows and kittens.

I hope I'm not judgemental like that. I've been lucky to have such good life.

You're not. You're the most understanding person I've ever known. I think that's why Snape felt comfortable sharing his story with you.

I hope he didn't mind my asking.

He probably felt better for it. It's good to talk, even if it's difficult.

Do you think so?

Yes. You've made a great start Luna.

I have?

Yes, From the sound of it Snape may still be willing to help us.

That's good. I'll give it a week or so before speaking to him again.

Good idea.

Wow this chapter got quite deep didn't it? Poor Snape.

69. Ideas

How's it going with Snape?

I have no idea.

What do you mean you have no idea? Aren't you talking to him?

I am but he's very difficult to read.

What has he said?

He said he regrets joining the death eaters.

Oh dear, that's not good.

I strongly disagree.

You would.

He says he regrets a lot of things he did back then.

He's not the only one. Anything else?

I don't think he entirely approves of Dumbledore's decisions a lot of the time.

Oh? That's more promising.

He does care about him though.

Oh for Merlin's sake. Why does that old kook always make things difficult for me?

You're right, Dumbledore has intentionally shown kindness to Professor Snape in the hopes that one day he would be less likely to help the talking diary version of Tom Marvolo Riddle in his quest to become human again.

I wouldn't put it past him.

Has anyone ever told you you're a little paranoid?

Not without consequences.

Consequences? Should I be worried?

Terrified.

You know, you're not as scary as you think.

Sure I am. It's kind of my thing.

Is that so?

Of course. I scared the entire wizarding population so much they wouldn't even say my name. Who else can say that?

True. Not a particularly pleasant legacy though.

Probably not but I'm still rather proud of it.

You would be.

I'll try to build a better legacy this time around. With your help.

We just need to get you human again first.

That's why we need Snape on side.

I know.

When did everything get so complicated?

Well for me, I think it was around the time I met you.

Ditto my dear.

...

Maybe I should talk to him?

What? Who?

Snape. We could plant a page from my diary in his office and I could...I don't know...

That sounds like a terrible Idea.

Maybe. It's all I can think of though.

Let's call that plan B. Or C. Or Z.

We just need to think of a plan A.

...

What if we lock him in a room and just tell him everything? Don't let him out until he understands and agrees to help?

He's a reasonably powerful wizard. I doubt a child, even one as remarkable as yourself could hold him anywhere for long. It might just get you in trouble.

Probably. I'll keep thinking.

...

What if we get him to agree to an unbreakable vow? Tell him you need to speak to him about something important and then make him swear not to reveal what you say to anyone else.

I don't think I would want to entrap him like that. It wouldn't be fair.

Fair? ugh...life was so much simpler when I didn't have to worry about silly things like morals and people's feelings.

...

The other me has woken up.

Are you sure?

Yes. I felt my hold over him wear off.

So now there is an angry Voldemort out in the world with a crazy death eater helping him?

Yes.

And nobody knows but us?

Yes.

We need help now.

We do.

We need to tell professor Snape. This isn't just about us anymore. We need to warn someone.

I know. We can't delay it any longer.

What if he doesn't understand?

We have to take that chance.

I wish there was another way.

Me too...Luna?

Yes Tom?

In case Snape takes me to Dumbledore to be destroyed, I just want to say...thank you...for everything...these have been the best years of my life.

70. Disaster

Tom, Harry Potter has been kidnaped!

What? When?

Half an hour ago in Hogsmead, someone in a hooded cloak ran out, grabbed him and portkeyed away! I just heard as I was on my way to professor Snape, the whole school is in a panic! Even the students and teachers from the visiting schools.

It must have been Crouch. Voldemort is implementing his original plan to restore himself using Potters blood.

What do we do?

Get to Snape. As quick as possible.

I'm not sure I can. The heads of houses are all in an emergency meeting with Dumbledore and people from The Ministry. We've all been told to return to our dorms.

This is all my fault.

Don't be silly. It's not your fault Tom.

It is. I'm the one who told Voldemort his plan to capture Potter was stupid and that he should just get someone to grab the kid and run. Apparently he listened.

Why did you encourage him to kidnap Harry in the first place?!

I didn't. I talked him out of it I swear! I just told him that…well if he was going to do it….that would be the best way.

Well now he has!

We still need Snape's help. I don't think the other Voldemort has restored himself yet. I would sense it if he had. So Potter is safe for now.

But for how much longer?

I don't know.

I'm sure Professor Snape must go back to his office at some point. I'm going to sneak in there and wait for him.

What if he doesn't go back there? What if he just leaves straight away to join the search for Potter?

Then there's not much I can do is there Tom!? Harry will die and everyone will be sad and the other Voldemort will come back and kill everyone and...

LUNA CALM DOWN! It's going to be ok.

You don't know that.

No I don't, but one of us has to be optimistic and you don't seem to be up to it at the moment.

I'm sorry Tom, I'm just so upset right now.

I know.

I need to go now. I have to get to the dungeons.

...

Luna? How's it going? Are you in the office?

Not yet. There are a lot of Slytherins still passing the office on the way to their dorm, I need to focus if I'm going to sneak past.

Ok.

...

I'm in.

Nice job.

Thanks. I had to blow up a statue in another corridor to distract the Slytherins but it was very affective.

You did what?

Don't judge Tom, you've done far worse.

I'm not judging. I'm extremely impressed.

Yes I expect Fred and George will be too when they find out.

I'm sure they will. Any sign of Snape?

Do you think I would be taking to you if there was?

Touché my dear.

He's coming. I can hear him shouting at someone in the hall.

Good luck.

It's going to be ok Tom.

Of course it will Luna. It will all be fine.

We'll talk soon.

Of course we will. I have no doubt whatsoever.

You're my best friend Tom. You know that right?

And you are mine Luna. Have faith my dear.

...

Hello?

Hello? Professor Snape I presume?

So you know who I am. With whom am I speaking?

With whom do you think you are speaking?

I am in no mood for games!

I know. You have a little lost saviour to find.

What do you know?

I know he's alive.

How?

I can sense it.

You can sense Potter?

I can sense Voldemort. He's weak. Once the spell is complete he will be stronger, Potter will remain safe until then.

Who are you?

You know who I am. I know Luna told you.

I'm asking you.

My name is Tom Marvolo Riddle. I am a horcrux belonging to Voldemort.

Why should I believe you?

Why would you be talking to me if you didn't.

Do not play with me.

I am not playing. I have information that can help you. Given the circumstances you may just have to take my word for it, at least for now. That's assuming you are interested in saving Potter of course. If you are in fact loyal to Voldemort then I suppose this whole conversation is redundant, although that would be unfortunate.

If you are who you say why would you care about Potter?

I don't. But I care about Luna and she believes in you. It would devastate her to learn her faith was misplaced.

Even assuming I believe you, why are you acting against the Dark Lord if you are a part of him?

Because he's lost his mind!

I can't disagree.

Then you are on the side of the light?

Let's suppose I am.

You are willing to accept my help?

What help can you offer?

A location.

You know where Potter is?

I have a good idea yes.

Where?

At my father's house. The spell Voldemort is planning to use requires the bone of my father. He is buried on the family estate.

Where?!

Little Hangleton. Barty Crouch Jr will be there guarding them both, so be prepared for a fight.

Crouch is dead.

I assure you he is not. Now do stop arguing and go. We're on borrowed time as it is.

Agreed. This conversation is not over though. For obvious reasons I will not be returning you to Miss Lovegood.

I had anticipated that yes.

Potter had better be alive.

You had better get moving then!

71. Questions

F: Testing testing 1 2 3

G: Riddle me this riddle me that...why'd we just steal an empty book from out dear ol' dungeon bat?

I'm going to take a wild guess...Fred and George?

G: Right in one.

F: Not so empty after all me thinks.

Indeed. Where is Snape?

G: He's fine.

F: ...well...mostly fine.

Mostly?

F: If you can call being unconscious in the hospital wing fine.

G: Still got all his fingers and toes at least which considering he just went head to head with old Voldy himself is basically a plus.

Voldemort has been restored then?

F: That's what the rumours are saying.

I had thought so. And Potter?

G: He's Ok. Hospital wing too but in better shape than Snape.

F: It was a close call though, seems Sevy showed up just in time. Snatched our dear Harry away lickety-split.

Well that's something good at least.

G: Glad you agree.

F: Good mate of ours is Harry.

G: Decent bloke.

F: Decent bloke indeed.

G: And a nice guy too.

F: Now onto the golden question.

G: The big one.

F: The one we've been eagerly anticipating.

G: Eagerly and patiently.

F: Who...

G: ...the bloody hell...

F: ...are you?

Please stop spinning me around like that? I'm getting sea sick.

G: No can do my friend.

I'm not your friend.

F: oh but an enemy of my enemy is my friend.

G: and a friend of my friend is also my friend.

F: and a friend of my enemy is most certainly not.

G: but a clever enemy might pretend to be a friend.

F: and a friend of ours says you're a friend of hers

G: and as good friends it is our duty to make sure the friends of our friends are friendly.

wow...try saying that five times fast.

...

Hello?

...

You're doing it aren't you?

F: Nailed it!

G: I did it better

F: Did not

G: Did too

F: Did not

G: Did too

Why are you arguing through me? You have mouths. Talk to each-other and leave me out of it.

G: What a grump.

F: Exactly what I was thinking.

Merlin give me strength.

G: You know, it occurs to me you didn't answer the question.

F: Evaded it completely in fact.

G: Tricky that.

F: Crafty I'd say.

G: Very Slytherin like.

You say that like it's a bad thing.

F: Depends who you ask.

G: So back to the question.

F: The big question.

G: Who are you...

F: ...and what do you want with Luna?

That wasn't part of the original question.

F: Well it is now.

G: And you're evading again.

I'm Tom.

F: Ok Tom. And who exactly are you?

What has Luna told you?

G: Doesn't matter.

F: All that matters is what you're gona tell us.

I'm not going to tell you anything until I speak to Luna.

G: Shame that, because you aren't speaking to Luna until you speak to us.

F: Cos the thing is...a while back our little sis Ginny told us about her own brief encounter with a talking diary.

G: One that sounds suspiciously similar to you.

F: One that went missing.

G: Without a trace.

F: One that also called itself Tom.

G: And made us very, very nervous when we heard about it.

F: Because we don't like talking diaries worming their way inside our sisters head.

G: Or our friends head.

Have you got any idea what's in Luna's head? I wouldn't dare.

F: Oh but we think you would.

G: And unless you cooperate with us you are never going to speak to Luna again.

What do you want me to say?

F: The truth.

You won't like the truth.

G: Tell it anyway.

On one condition.

F: Yes?

Speak to Luna after you speak to me. Let her explain her side.

G: And what's her side?

Well that's for her to tell you isn't it?

F: I suppose it is.

G: So Tommy boy...

F: ...start talking.

Do you promise not to interrupt while I do?

G: Maybe.

F: We'll find out when you actually start wont we?

Very well...I'll start at the beginning...

G: Good choice.

F: Very convenient place to start.

Oh Merlin this is going to take a while...

72. Circles

Riddle?

Snape?

Yes.

For Merlin's sake. What is this, pass the parcel? When will it be Luna's turn again?

As I said before you will not be returned to Miss Lovegood.

Why?

Because you are a danger to her.

That could not be further from the truth my friend.

I am most certainly not your friend.

Funny...I said something similar to the Weasley twins.

And what else did you say to them?

I said a lot of things.

Such as?

Why don't you ask them?

I'm asking you.

They said something similar to me.

I have told you before, do not play with me!

Or you'll do what? Destroy me? Take me to Dumbledore? You haven't done either yet. I'm curious to know why?

There were urgent circumstances at play.

Those urgent circumstances have passed. You have gone to the effort of getting me back from the twins but you haven't informed Dumbledore of my existence yet. Why?

Why did you tell me where to find Potter?

Good question.

Answer it!

I had hoped you might stop the other Voldemort's return.

Why? Why would you be acting against yourself?

I told you before...he has gone insane.

He was always insane.

Says his former follower.

You are a part of him!

and by that logic I must also be insane. Is that right?

Yes.

Then I ask again. Why no Dumbledore?

What have you done to Luna?

I have befriended her.

Luna is an innocent. She has more sense and more kindness than to be friends with you!

In her defence she only recently learned who I was.

How recently?

A few months.

You brainwashed her.

She brainwashed me.

Is that supposed to be funny?

I suppose not. You don't seem like the type to appreciate humour. It's not entirely inaccurate though. Luna has changed me. She has made me realise that there is more to this world than blind hatred.

Is that so?

Luna has held this diary for three years now. You know her. You've spoken to her. Taught her. I know you hold her in higher esteem than your other students. Do you really doubt that in all that time she might have influenced me?

What I doubt is your capacity for redemption.

And yet we return once again to the simple fact that you have not taken me to Dumbledore.

I will hand you over eventually, but I want answers first.

Why should I bother giving you answers if you refuse to believe them?

You haven't given me anything yet.

What do you want?

I want to know what you want.

I want to stop going in circles. I want to talk to Luna.

Why?

Because she's my best friend. My only friend if I'm honest.

Voldemort doesn't have friends. He has minions and he has enemies.

I'm not Voldemort. I'm Tom.

Same thing.

Are you the same man you were when you were at school?

No.

Then you accept that people change. He changed. So did I.

You're not a person.

Now you're just being petty.

How did you change?

I lost my hatred.

You already said that. What else?

What else do you need? My hatred was everything. It was my motive. My life. Without it I am changed. I am new. My whole purpose is realigned. Luna gave me that.

How?

By showing me that the world is more weird and wonderful than I ever realised before. That it is worth believing in.

I admit she does have a rather unique outlook.

That's an understatement. The first few months with her I thought she was crazy.

And now?

Now I think she's the best person I've ever met. She understands the world in ways everyone else is blind to.

What is your intention?

If I'm about to be destroyed then how can I intend to do anything?

What would you do If you weren't destroyed?

I would like to be human again. I would like to talk to Luna face to face for the first time. I would like to stop the other part of me continuing a mission I no longer believe in.

Why should I believe you?

I can't answer that. Either you do or you don't. That's up to you.

Luna says you helped her. Offered her support in difficult times.

I tried to.

The twins seemed to be buying into your story too. They were considering handing you back to Miss Lovegood before I confiscated you again.

Really? I think I'm starting to like those boys.

I am less convinced however.

I figured as much. So...Dumbledore?

Not yet. I still have questions.

Of course you do.

...

Pettigrew?

Yes Master?

How are you today?

I...I'm well Master.

Glad to hear it. What have you been up to?

I...well I'm just ...still hiding from the other Voldemort My Lord.

Good good. He's been restored by the way. I probably should have told you before.

Oh Merlin!

Sorry for the delay. Things have been a little complicated recently.

What should I do?

I think it would be best if you made your way back to Hogwarts. You should be marginally safer within the schools boundaries and you can bring my potion with you.

Yes My Lord. Is there anything else you need?

Yes actually. I was thinking we could chat for a while.

Chat Master?

Yes, I've been facing a lot of hostility recently. It would be nice to talk to someone friendly for a change.

Oh. Ok...I...how are you Master?

I'm alright I suppose. Snape is proving very argumentative. It's such a bother having to be civil to people instead of just demanding obedience. Things were so much easier before.

Well...I'll always be obedient to you My Lord.

Of course you will. That's why I like you rat. You know your place.

Thank you Master.

I just need to find a few more allies like you to even the odds against other me.

I have a question My Lord.

Yes?

If the other Voldemort has been restored...why hasn't he summoned the Death Eaters yet?

That...is an excellent question.

Thank you.

Are you sure they haven't been called?

Well I haven't felt anything.

Voldemort knows you are sided with me, he may have excluded you from the summons.

He can do that?

I'm not sure. Hold on a moment.

...

Snape?

What?

Well that was rude. Are you sure you were my follower?

Answer the question or I will stop responding.

So rude. Anyway...are you aware of any Death Eaters being summoned to Voldemort yet?

No why?

So he didn't call anyone when you were recuing Potter?

No.

And you haven't heard anything since?

No.

And you're sure it's not just you that's been left out because you saved Potter? No one else has been called either?

Not to my knowledge.

Ok. Just checking.

Wait! What is going on?

...

You're right rat. He hasn't called anyone yet.

But why?

I have no idea. I would have thought that would be his first move. Something must be wrong.

Maybe the potion went wrong?

It's possible. They did implement the plan very quickly after Crouch took the other me. Maybe they rushed it? Brewed it wrong?

What would that mean?

If we're right...and I hope we are...It may mean the other Voldemort is still not at full strength.

That would be good.

That would be fantastic. If we can act fast enough to bring him down before he gets any stronger.

How do we do that?

Hold on again.

...

Snape?

What!? What were you saying before? Why were you asking about the summons?

I have a theory that may prove beneficial in bringing down Voldemort. If you can bring yourself to trust me.

What theory?

I think he might not be as restored as we thought. He hasn't made a move yet. I think he's still weak.

Are you sure?

No. Or I wouldn't have said 'theory'. Please do try to keep up.

I don't think I like this version of you. It's catty.

The other version is homicidal. Do you prefer that?

No.

Then stop whining. If you can't accept that my intentions are good now then can you at least accept me as the lesser of two evils?

I suppose.

Good. I have a plan.

I'm listening.

...

Pettigrew. Get back to the school and try to stay safe, I have a plan and will need you here to implement it.

Yes Master. I'm on my way.

73. Team Luna

This is a terrible plan.

You sound just like Luna.

Excuse me?

She never liked my plans either.

I can't imagine why.

It's not a bad plan. You just don't appreciate my brilliance.

I question your sanity.

I almost took over the whole wizarding world. I'm good at planning stuff.

You were defeated by a child.

Why does everyone feel the need the bring that up?

It's a fairly significant point.

It's an unfortunate technicality. I was defeated by a very old magical clause that no one could have reasonably known to prepare for.

That happened to come in the form of a toddler.

Seriously. You sound just like Luna. Just less likable.

It's still a terrible plan.

Fine then, go report me to Dumbledore and see if he can come up with a better one.

...

Well?

...tell me the plan again.

Ok...my readymade potion will be arriving at the school this afternoon.

You still haven't told me how it is getting here. Who are you in contact with?

It doesn't matter.

Yes it does.

It's fine.

You have someone working for you.

He's harmless.

It has to be a Death Eater so I don't find that at all believable.

You were a Death Eater.

And I'm far from harmless.

The potion has arrived. It's been left by a tree near the edge of the forest a few meters left of the half-giants cabin.

And I'm expected to trudge out to the edge of the forest in the middle of the night and retrieve this alleged potion whilst an unidentified Death Eater lurks nearby?

What's the problem?

I don't like walking into traps.

It's not a trap.

How wonderful I have your word on that.

What's wrong? Are you scared? I thought you were far from harmless.

You are as insufferable as a child.

Luna always says that too.

I have the potion.

Excellent.

What now?

We need more of it. Enough to fill a pewter large size 4 cauldron. You can use that sample as a base to replicate it.

Why?

Because I had planned to use the other Voldemort's blood as part of the spell, but as he is now off making plots of his own I can't, so we need extra potion to compensate.

And what exactly will this potion do?

It will transfer more of Voldemort's energy into me thereby weakening him further and improving your chances of taking him down.

There are a lot of ingredients on the list you gave me that need to be cut, mashed or otherwise prepared. How exactly to you expect me to get all this done before Voldemort finds a way to regain his strength?

Do you have the ingredients?

Most of them.

So all you have to do it get them ready.

Which as I just said is a great deal of work.

Yes...if only you had a group of talented potion students to hand who are already aware of the situation and willing to help.

I am not involving them.

Of course not. Let's just forget the whole thing. Let Voldemort rise again...start a new war...that Luna, the Twins, all your other students and their families will have to fight in...maybe die in.

I can't believe I'm doing this.

That's the spirit!

Tom?

Luna? Is that you?

Yes. It's me.

I can't believe it. It's so good to hear from you again.

It's only for a while. Professor Snape is standing over me looking very stern.

Did he see you write that?

Yes. He scowled.

Sounds about right.

I told him I would only help if he let me say hello.

That's my girl.

He scowled again.

I've missed you.

I've missed you too.

Are the Twins here?

F: course we are.

G: here and ready to get this party started.

F: saving the world and all that.

G: Heroic deeds.

F: Gallant quests.

You sound so Gryffindor.

G: Thank you.

F: Yeah cheers mate.

That's enough of that.

You again? I want to talk to Luna some more.

Tough.

You're mean.

Tough. We have a potion to prepare.

You do. I'm not exactly in a position to be hands on right now. You know...due to the lack of hands.

I'm going to stop talking to you now. Is there anything else I need to know before I start brewing?

No...just that...even if you are rude, curt and argumentative...I can see why Luna likes you.

She saw you write that.

I bet she smiled.

...she did.

A/N - Had some serious trouble with this one. Hope it was OK. Go Team Luna!

74. Moments

F - Ok Tommy boy, Snape has gone to get a few final ingredients from a supplier in London, we have about half hour until he comes back.

G - Thanks to some masterful lock picking courteously of us of course.

F - Yes very masterful; you were really locked up tight.

G - It's amazing how much he's got stashed in that desk actually.

F - He's a bit of a hoarder.

G - Quite a surprise to be honest.

F - We even found some old prank prototypes he confiscated from us years ago.

G - They still work.

Good for you. Where is Luna?

G - We're getting to that.

F - It is our most generous decree that you may speak to her.

G - Under our careful and diligent supervision of course.

F - So no funny business.

Don't worry, I'll leave the funny business to you.

G - Good idea.

F - It is our specialty area.

G - Anyway, we'll pass you over now.

F - Remember, we're watching. So be good.

Yeah yeah yeah.

Hi Tom.

Thank Merlin! How are you Luna?

Tired. We've been brewing for hours.

Sorry. The potion is rather a lot of work isn't it?

Yes. But it's not too bad. I think we will be finished soon.

That's good.

Do you think this will work? We can really stop Voldemort?

I believe so.

And then you can be human again?

With any luck.

Good. I'm looking forward to it.

Me too.

Will you look the same as in those photos I saw, or will you be older?

F - Photos?

G - What photos?

Butt out Weasley's, you said I could talk to Luna.

F - Fine but we will be coming back to this later.

For Merlin's sake, just ask Luna to show you them.

G - Hey Luna can we see the photos of little Voldie?

F - Yeah can we?

Do you two just forget how to speak out loud sometimes?

G - Just keeping you in the loop Tommy.

Please don't.

I told them I'll show them the yearbook later.

Wonderful. To answer your earlier question I believe I will look sixteen.

That's good. I think it would be strange if you looked older.

I agree.

F - Me too.

Go away!

Don't be rude Tom.

They're being annoying.

I'll ask them to stop.

Thank you.

It been odd here at school recently. Everyone is still on edge since Harry was taken.

Well it was fairly recent I suppose it will take some time for things to settle.

I feel quite sorry for him.

Who? Potter?

Yes. He told people that it was Voldemort who took him. That he's been restored; but not many people believe him, lots of them say he's lying.

That makes sense. Voldemort hasn't made a move yet and people don't like to believe inconvenient truths, especially when there is no evidence to back it up.

I know. Poor Harry. It must be so hard not having anyone believe him.

Like when people don't believe in your creatures?

I suppose so.

I'm sorry.

Why?

For never believing you.

You made more of an effort than most people.

Well you were rather persuasive.

Does that mean you believe in Nargles now?

No...but I don't not believe in them either.

I can accept that.

How long until Snape is due back?

I'm not sure. Not long.

I wish we didn't have to steal moments like this.

Me too. I miss being able to talk all the time.

We will again soon. You should probably put me back before Snape returns. If he finds out we were talking we might not get another opportunity like this.

That's true. I should go now anyway, Fred and George have just wandered away and started planning a Nargle tracking expedition. Based on what I can hear it's likely to end in chaos if I don't intervene quickly.

Merlin help us all. Good luck.

...

Two days late but happy anniversary everyone! I can't believe I have been writing this story for a whole year now. Thank you so much to all of you, and a special thanks to anyone who has been with me since the start. Hope you are all as excited as I am to see where year two takes us.

75. Brainstorm

Ok I've done everything you said and the potion is now bubbling green with pink steam

Is it?

It is supposed to be doing that?

I don't know. Never made it before. What do you think? You're the Potions Master.

I'm following your directions!

Well I do expect you to apply your own common sense along with that.

My own common sense says to hand you to Dumbledore and pour this green mess down a drain.

Seems a little irresponsible. Who knows what it would do down there? You might end up with mutant rats running about the castle.

I hate you.

No you don't. You're enjoying this as much as I am.

The potion is finished as far as I can tell based on your half baked instructions. What now?

Now we just have to find a way to dump a load of it on other Voldemorts head.

I really hate you.

...

F - One word. Catapult

S - We are not catapulting potion at Voldemort!

G - Why not? We could put it in one of the water balloon things.

L -What if we miss? We will have just made him angry.

S - Exactly my point Luna.

T - What if we portkey it over his head?

S - You can't portkey objects on their own and even if you could we would need to know exactly where he was standing.

F - Wait till he's asleep.

L - We don't know when or where he sleeps.

S - Luna once again is the only sensible contributor to this conversation.

T - Are you lot honestly writing all this down instead of speaking?

S - Don't be ridiculous. We have set up a spell that transfers everything we say to text for your benefit.

T - Oh? That's clever. Thank you.

G - It was Luna's idea.

F - Clever girl our Luna is.

L - Oh shush you two.

T - They aren't wrong.

S- Agreed but can we please get back on track?

F - Right. Catapult.

S - We are not catapulting anything at Voldemort!

G - I really don't feel we are giving the catapult idea appropriate consideration.

S - I think we've given it far more consideration than it deserves.

T - It's a delicate mission which needs to be done right first time so he doesn't have a chance to retaliate. We can't use any method that could cause us to miss. So throwing, catapulting or anything like that is a no.

F - Spoil sport.

T - Someone needs to get close enough to directly dump it on him.

S - And as the only adult that someone would of course be me.

G - Oh come on Professor we would never ask you to do that.

S - As kind as that sentiment is Mr Weasley there is no way I could ever allow any of you to put your lives in danger. I will be going and that is the end of it.

L - We still need a plan.

T - We need a way you can get close to Voldemort without being seen. A way to sneak past Crouch too. Just so you can get close enough to douse him and then get out.

F - Umm, Professor?

S - Yes?

F - Would now be a good time to mention that Harry Potter owns an invisibility cloak?

S - Why am I not surprised?

Decided to stick everyone's initials in since the conversation is getting a little busy these days.

76. Oops

S - Why did you tell him? What were you thinking?

F - He wanted to know why we needed his invisibility cloak?

S - So you told him we were using it to attack Voldemort? Are you insane? Why couldn't you just take it?

G - Harry's our friend we couldn't just steal from him.

S - You could have just borrowed it!

L - I agree with Professor Snape.

S - Thank you Luna.

G - Oh come on Luna. Don't be like that.

F - We thought he deserved to know.

L - It just complicates things. What if he tells Dumbledore and then Dumbledore tries to stop us?

G - He won't tell him.

S - How could you possibly know that? He could be on his way to the headmasters office now!

F - He isn't.

L - How do you know?

G - Because he's outside the door.

S - He's what?

T - Hey guys? You do know you're still in range of that speech to text spell right? I can see all this. What's going on?

S - Why did you bring him here?!

T - Is anyone even looking at me?

G - Well he sort of insisted after we told him about the plan.

F - Yeah Ron and Hermione too.

S - All of them? Anyone else I should know about? Lets invite a few more and call it a party shall we? I'll bake a cake!

G - Calm down Professor.

F - It's not that bad.

L - Would you like a glass of water Sir? You look a little red.

T - You know what? I'm just going to stay out of this one.

G - We should probably let them in at some point.

S - I need a drink.

L - Here's your water Professor.

S - That's not what I meant Luna but thank you anyway.

L - You're welcome.

S - Before you open the door, how much do they actually know?

G - Just that we have a plan to attack Voldemort.

F - And that there is a potion.

G - And we need his cloak.

L - Do they know about Tom?

G - No. They don't know about Tom.

T - Thank Merlin.

S - Thank Merlin.

L - Oh good.

G - Where is Tommy boy anyway?

L - On the desk.

F - Hey Tom.

T - Hello Fred.

G - We have a slight problem.

T - I know. I saw.

F - Oh yeah that spell is still going.

G - Oops.

T - Are you going to let Potter in then?

F - We are.

T - Leave the spell going then. I'd like to stay in the loop.

S - We will. You will not be participating in the conversation however. In fact I think it would be best if we put you inside the desk until they are gone.

T - I agree. This is messy enough already.

L - Talk to you later Tom.

T - I look forward to it Luna.

...

HG - With all due respect Professor I don't understand how you can responsibly be plotting an attack against Voldemort himself with a group of young students without telling Dumbledore.

S - Well Miss Granger I'm sure you can understand why you were not originally consulted then.

HG - This is ridiculous.

F - It's a good plan.

G - Yeah, we've got it all worked out.

HP - Why do you need my cloak?

F - To sneak up on Voldy.

R - What poor sod drew the short straw for that suicide mission then?

S - That would be me Mr Weasley.

R - Oh.

HG - We need to tell Dumbledore.

S, G, F, L - No!

HP - Why not.

G - There's a good reason.

HG - Tell us it!

F - It's not that easy.

R - Why?

G - We um...there's a spy.

HG - What?

F - We have a spy on the inside. If we go to Dumbledore he will be required to act in a way that could put our spy at risk.

HP - Dumbledore wouldn't do anything to knowingly put someone at risk. He could help.

S - We can't take that chance. It's better if we just leave him out of it for now.

HG - Who's the spy?

L - It's better if you don't know. The more people involved the more risk there is.

S - You shouldn't even know this much.

HG - This is ridiculous.

S - You already said that.

HG - Well it is. You're a Professor, you shouldn't be involved in things like this. You certainly shouldn't be involving students.

G - Actually Luna started it... Ow! ...you hit me?!

S - It was barely a tap, now be quiet.

HP - I'm going to Dumbledore.

S - I can't let you do that Potter.

HG - You can't stop us.

G - Oh Merlin's balls.

F - Grab them!

R - Hey! Get off! Let go.

L - Sorry about this.

HG - Stop it, you can't'!

HP - Ouch.

S - Silencio! Incarcerous!

G - Hold them down.

F - Oops sorry Ron.

...

S - Well that was a disaster.

L - Oh dear. What are we going to do?

G - Well they seem pretty well secured.

F - Out cold in fact.

S - You should have just taken the cloak.

F - Really Professor? Now isn't the time to say 'I told you so'

G - And it's quite petty of you.

S - I hate you both.

L - We have the cloak now anyway. How soon can we start the plan?

S - We will have to start as soon as possible, before anyone notices that I've got three unconscious students tied up in my office. Oh Merlin I never thought I would have to say that.

L - We were planning to attack soon anyway weren't we?

S - I suppose so.

L - Tom can let us know when Voldemort is sleeping and help you apparate near to him.

S - I can't believe I'm doing this. Why can't my life be easy?

G - You ok professor?

S - Ok? I'm losing my mind. At this point if Voldemort doesn't kill me Dumbledore will.

F - You think you have problems? When our mum finds out we knocked our brother out Voldemort is going to look like a kitten in comparison.

S - Forgive me if that doesn't make me feel better.

L - I'm going to get Tom.

...

T - Well that was entertaining.

S - Not the word I would use.

L - Do you have any ideas Tom?

T - Just one. Fred? George?

F, G - Yeah?

T - When I'm human again, can I meet your mum? She sounds brilliant.

I didn't use the italics and underlining since there are so many people now I just used the initials. I hope they were clear.

77. War

T - Are we outside the school grounds yet?

S - We're in the Shrieking Shack.

T - Excellent.

S - How long do we have to wait? I still have the Golden Trio tied up in my office and the longer we wait the more chance there is we'll be caught.

T - Golden trio?

S - Potter, Granger and the youngest Weasley boy.

T - That's what you call them?

S - It seemed fitting, they're Dumbledore's trio of favourites.

T - I like it, cute and catty. Very appropriate for you.

S - You didn't answer my question. How long?

T - Not sure. We have to wait until he's sleeping. This isn't an exact science you know.

S - Wonderful. I'll just sit here and wait to be caught then.

T - Cute and catty. So you.

S - I am not cute.

T - You're adorable to me.

S - I hate you.

...

T - Ok, the other Voldemort is sleeping.

S - You're sure?

T - I am. His energy feels fainter, calmer. This is as close to vulnerable as we can hope for.

S - Where is he?

T - I don't know.

S - What do you mean you don't know? You said you could find him!

T - And I can. Tear a page from my middle.

S - What for?

T - I'm going to turn it into a portkey and focus it on the other me's location to take you there.

S - Ah, ok.

T - Where is Luna?

S - She's here. She's fine.

T - Can I speak to her?

S - I'm leaving you here with her when I go.

T - You are?

S - Yes. If I'm not back in half an hour her and the twins are under orders to take you to Dumbledore and explain what happened.

T - Fair enough.

S - Do you really think this will work?

T - Do you? You're the one going in.

S - I'm optimistic.

T - Really? You always struck me as a pessimist.

S - I believe in hope. Sometimes it's all there is.

T- I'm optimistic too. I think we have a very good shot.

S - Really? Or is this a bizarre attempt to make me feel better?

T - Is it working?

S - A little.

T - Good. I really do think this will work though. As long as you do your part.

S - I'm ready.

T - You have the page?

S - Yes.

T - And the potion?

S - Yes.

T - And the cloak?

S - I have everything!

T - Off we go then.

...

L - Tom. What's happening?

T - I'm not sure Luna. I haven't felt anything yet.

L - I hope Professor Snape is ok, he's been gone ten minutes now.

T - I'm sure he's fine. He's smart and resourceful.

L - True. I'm still worried though.

T - Are you still in the shack?

L - Yes.

T - I think you should go back to the school; just in case he failed, you should be inside the protection of the grounds.

L - Good idea. We are moving now.

T - Good.

L - How will we know if he succeeded?

T - I'll know I'll fe...

L - Tom?

Tom? What happened?

Tom? Are you there?

Tom?

TOM?

78. Alive

Snape arrived just outside the grounds of the mansion where the newly restored Voldemort was staying. Who had lived there before the Dark Lord moved in was unclear. It looked well kept at least, though nowhere near as lavish as the homes of many purblood's he knew to be supporters of the Dark Lord so it seemed Voldemort had still not made contact with his former followers or else he would probably be staying somewhere nicer than this. Snape felt a surge of relief that he hadn't found himself arriving in the middle of somewhere like Malfoy mansion where he would no doubt be facing hoards of security.

This place looked quiet. Almost abandoned.

...

We're here. It Looks quiet.

Good. I can feel Voldemort and he's still asleep. I'll see if I can use our bond to keep him that way.

That would be appreciated.

...

The wizard circled the building carefully under the cover of the borrowed invisibility cloak, looking for any hidden traps or wards and finding nothing he couldn't handle. His dark mark seemed to act as a key in one instance letting him safely through.

Crouch didn't even get a chance to raise his wand as the Potions Master blasted him across the kitchen shortly after breaking in, the look of surprise in the Death Eaters eyes would have been amusing if Snape had the luxury of being amused. Thankfully there didn't seem to be any other followers lurking about.

Unfortunately there was a very dangerous dark wizard sleeping somewhere nearby who he still had to worry about.

Oh Merlin, Snape really hoped he was still sleeping. Crouch had made quite a loud bang when he hit that cupboard after all.

The whole way up to the master bedroom his heart had been lodged in his throat, breathing as shallow as possible, very aware that he could be facing his end at any moment.

Why did he agree to this again?

The sight of a sleeping Dark Lord was one of the strangest and most horrifying things he had ever seen. He shrunk the invisibility cloak wordlessly and stuffed it into a pocket of his own cloak having gotten as far as he needed to get.

Please don't wake up, please don't wake up, please don't wake up.

The mantra ran through his head on a loop as he tugged the stopper out of the top of the potion bottle. He was ashamed to admit his hand shook as he held the bottle out over the top of Voldemort's head.

It wasn't until the liquid was already falling, thick and gloopy through the air that a pair of cold blue eyes shot open locking onto his and suddenly the Potions Master was flying through the air and back out into the hall, a blood curdling scream following him.

Lying dazed on the ground Snape took several moments to regain his senses and was relieved to note that Voldemort was not yet coming after him, in fact the sound of angry screams filled the space indicating that the potion had hit its target and was hopefully doing its job.

Unwilling to stick around just in case the potion failed Snape ran, all but throwing himself down the stairs at breakneck speed.

At the bottom of the stairs Crouch was back on his feet waiting, eyes crazed and panicked at the sound of his masters screams coming from above.

"What have you done?! What have you done?!" He shrieked.

Snape didn't stop to explain instead putting all his strength into another curse without even slowing. Once again the Death Eater went flying.

He cleared the front door and was running for safety when a burning heat in the front pocket of his robes knocked him off balance and the Potions Master went tumbling to the ground tearing his outer cloak off and throwing it away from himself.

There on the ground the cloak erupted into flames reminding him briefly of the time someone had set fire to his robes during that quidditch game when Quirrel was cursing Potters broom except this time the robes were fully engulfed and glowing and...moving?

What?

Something rooted the Professor to the spot as the pile of cloth on the ground began to twist and groan, slowly gaining mass, lifting upwards.

What on earth was happening? A brief moment of clarity inspired him to ask Tom if this was something to do with the spell when he suddenly realised the page from the diary he had brought with him was in the pocket of the cloak he was now watching.

The flames fizzled out.

The robes stood.

The late hour meant the area was dark under a half moon and Snapes eyes adjusted to the loss of light now that the fire was gone.

He saw black first. A mess of black hair. Ruffled and unkempt.

A person.

The figure was looking down. Posture hunched as through struggling to stand.

When the form lurched forward Snape dived to catch it instinctively, feeling immediate concern.

"Tom?" He asked in a worried tone, mind filling in the blanks even through his confusion. This must be Tom...right?

"Tom is...is that you?"

The body in his arms curled towards him, head lolling to one side as brown eyes looked up focusing for one brief moment on his face. "Wow...that actually worked" the boy grinned.

And it was a boy, Snape could now see. A teenager, barely sixteen, wearing Snape's own cloak which was still draped over him. Under that he wore an old style of Hogwarts uniform that had not been used in decades.

Tom's gaze was dazed, his body weak even as he blinked up at the night sky. "You know..." He said, voice slightly slurred "...you look exactly like Luna drew you"

The Potions Master had a brief moment to wonder when the young girl had ever drawn a picture of him when the door to the house behind them flew open with a resounding crash and there was Voldemort stumbling towards them slow but determined.

Snape had no time to think, no time to move before a hand clasped around his with a sheet of paper; the parchment cold and rough against his skin and then the world was shifting.

An angry scream in a dark garden shifted quickly to a terrified scream in a well lit room and Snape found himself face to face with a panicked looking Peter Pettigrew, the now unconscious form of Tom Riddle still held in his arms.

...

A brief fight and several scorch marks on walls and ceilings later they were able to establish that Pettigrew was the Death Eater who had made the original potion and delivered it to Snape and that they were both now on the side of Tom for one reason or another.

Tom himself was out cold, though now comfortably laid down in the bedroom of the safe-house just outside of Hogsmead where Pettigrew had been hiding the last few days. How Voldemort had a safe-house this close to the school that no one knew about was a mystery for another day.

The rat himself was hovering worriedly by the Potion Masters shoulder as he checked the boys vital signs.

Breathing normal.

Temperature normal.

Heart-rate normal.

Fingers and toes all where they should be.

"So he's ok right? He's going to be ok? We're going to be ok?"

"Yes Pettigrew he looks fine. I think."

"You think?"

"Well he's just built himself a new body after spending decades as a diary, I don't exactly know what is supposed to happen now."

"But he'll be ok right?"

"I don't know, for Merlin's sake! I think so. I hope so. Otherwise we will have a very angry Voldemort to deal with"

Pettigrew's terrified whimper made Snape cringe.

"We need to contact Luna."

"Who?"

"What? What do you mean who? The girl at Hogwarts Tom has been communicating with. The one who has the diary"

"Oh, yes I remember now...I didn't realise he was still talking to her...I don't get told much."

"Gee I wonder why."

"Why do we need this girl? We have Tom. Once he's awake he can fight Voldemort. Right?"

"We need to tell Luna not to go to Dumbledore yet because if she does he might just come after all of us and Voldemort will be the least of our problems."

"Dumbledore? Oh no. Oh no!"

"Shut up"

"Ok, Ok, Ok"

"Where is your page?"

"Page?"

"The page you contact Tom with. Where is it? My one got fried when Tom appeared"

"Oh, right ok. It's here."

...

S - Luna?

S - Luna? Are you there? Does this thing still work?

S - Luna? Fred? George? Anyone?

L - Tom? Thank goodness, I've been so worried.

S - No. It's Snape.

L - Professor? Where is Tom?

S - He's here. He's fine, I think. He's sleeping.

L - SLEEPING!? He's human?

S - Yes.

L - Oh Merlin!

S - Luna, what is happening at your end? Have you been to Dumbledore yet?

L - No.

S - It's been two hours Luna. You were supposed to go to him after 30 minutes.

L - I know.

S - I'm relieved that you didn't but still...you should have.

L - I know. We're sorry.

S - It's alright. Are the twins still there?

F - We're here.

G - Present and accounted for.

F - Is Tom really human now?

G - For real?

S - Yes.

F - Blimey!

G - What does he look like?

S - That hardly matters.

G - Does he have a nose?

S - Of course he has a nose.

F - Harry said Voldemort doesn't have a nose.

S - That's true. It was strange to see. Tom has a nose though.

G - That's good.

F - Would be weird to have a mate that doesn't have a nose.

S - Until today he didn't have a body. Not having a nose would still be an improvement.

F - Very good point Professor.

G - So Professor, when are you and Tom coming back to the school?

S - I'm not sure.

L - What happened to Voldemort? Was he defeated?

S - I'm not sure. We portkeyed away before I could fully see what state he was in. All I know is he was alive but his reactions times seemed slow. At least enough that we had time to get away.

G - That's good isn't it? Promising?

F - Tom said the potion would weaken him right?

S - Let's hope it did.

G - What do we do now?

S - I'm going to wait until Tom wakes up and see if he knows anything about Voldemorts state. Once I know what we are dealing with I am going to go to Dumbledore. It's about time we tell him everything that's going on. Then we can deal with all of this once and for all.

F - Blimey.

G - Are you sure?

S - I am very sure.

L - Cant I see Tom before you hand him over to Dumbledore?

S - I'm not handing Tom over Luna. I'm just telling Dumbledore he exists. Tom will stay here.

G - Where is here?

S - You don't need to know that yet.

F - Good idea. Don't know, can't tell.

G - Cunning.

L - Is Tom ok though? Did you speak to him? Did he say anything before he went to sleep?

S - He said I looked just like your drawing of me.

G - You did a drawing of Snape?

F - Can we see it?

L - Is that all he said?

S - He was only awake for a few seconds then used his remaining energy to help us escape. I'll let you speak to him when he wakes up.

L - Thank you.

S - You three should get some sleep. I'll speak to you in the morning.

F - Wait...what do we do about Ron and Harry and Hermione?

G - Yeah, they're still tied up. Someone will notice if they aren't in their classes in the morning.

F - Everyone will definitely notice if you aren't Professor.

S - Oh Merlin. I had forgotten about them. Are they awake?

G - Not yet.

S - Leave them then. If they wake up, try to keep them calm. I will hopefully be back in the school by breakfast time tomorrow and we can let them go and all go to Dumbledore together.

G - That's if Tom wakes up by then.

S - Yes, indeed. Let's hope he does.

F - Keep us updated if anything changes.

L - When Tom wakes up tell him I'm very excited to meet him and I'll see him soon.

S - I will. Anything else?

L - Just one thing...well done for successfully completing the plan Professor. You did a fantastic job and I'm really glad you're ok.

G - Yeah great job Sir.

F - You did brilliant.

S - Thank you all of you...you're very kind.

F - Don't mention it. You take care.

G - See you tomorrow Professor.

L - Sleep well.

...

"Pettigrew?"

"Um, yes?"

"Please tell me there is food in this place?"

79. Whole

T - Luna?

L - Professor?

T - No its Tom.

L - Tom? Oh my goodness! Are you Ok? Professor Snape said you were human now?!

T - Yes. I...it's so strange...I'm actually writing at the moment...with a quill...I can't remember the last time I did that...I have hands!

L - This is so exciting. I can't wait to meet you!

T - I can't wait to meet you either.

L - How are you feeling?

T - Tired. Hungry. Achy. My body hurts. Luna I have a body.

L - Tom I can't stop giggling. I'm so excited. I can't believe this has finally happened.

T - Me neither.

L - I have one question though.

T - What is it?

L - If you're human now, how can we still send messages through the diary pages?

T - Honestly Luna...I have no idea.

L - It's not something you did?

T - No. It must be an after effect of the diary being a Horcrux for so long. No one has ever made a Horcrux corporeal before so there is no way of knowing how the vacated object will behave afterwards.

L - It's very useful that it still works.

T - It is. It's a good way to talk.

L - Oh...I thought of a second question. What happened with Voldemort?

T - He's weak. Very weak. We have a very good chance of winning this.

L - That's good news.

T - Yes it is.

L - Do you know when Professor Snape is coming back to the School?

S - I will be making my way back in a moment.

L - Oh, Hello Professor. I didn't realise you were there.

S - Hello Miss Lovegood. Could you and the Weasely boys please meet me in my office in ten minutes? We will all go to Dumbledore from there.

L - Yes Sir. They are already there anyway keeping Harry, Ron and Hermione calm.

S - They woke up then?

L - Yes.

S - We will have to take them with us. Let's hope Dumbledore isn't too upset about our abuse of the wonder bunch.

T - For the record I don't like this plan.

L - We need to tell the Headmaster eventually Tom.

T - Does it have to be now? I only just got this body. I would prefer if it wasn't immediately sent to Azkaban.

L - I won't let that happen. You haven't done anything wrong.

T - Not recently.

L - Dumbledore will understand.

T - Let's hope so.

...

Harry looked angry.

Hermione looked affronted.

Ron looked dazed.

Luna looked worried.

Fred and George looked amused.

Snape looked tired and resigned.

Dumbledore leaned forward in his seat and regarded the group carefully.

"So, from the beginning, what exactly happened?"

A few notes on things I've had comments on;

Regarding the appearance of Tom and Voldemort;

Voldemort's eyes. Red in the books, Blue in the films. I went with blue because I couldn't remember what they were in the books at the time of writing so I just googled Voldemort's eyes and all the images were blue. Going to keep this because I like blue.

Toms Hair. Black in the books. In the films it looked brown to me so that's what I originally wrote. This one I will change.

Tom's eyes. Brown in the books and the films.

Final setup for this story;

Tom - Brown eyes. Black hair. One nose.

Voldemort - Blue eyes. No hair. No nose.

Regarding the diary still working;

Explanation as above. We don't know why, it just does. (Because it's handy)

Regarding Harry and Ron in wanting to go to Dumbledore;

Thanks to Luna the Golden trio have now had three mostly normal Voldemort free years (with a few exceptions) so they have not got into the habit of sneaking around Dumbledore like they did in canon, so their main instinct here was to do the opposite of what Snape wanted rather than join the plan.

...

The Madness in Me. Filling plot-holes one flimsy excuse at a time :)

80. A plan

L - Tom? Are you there?

T - Luna? What's going on? What happened with Dumbledore?

L - It's…complicated.

T - Start at the beginning.

L - Well…it started ok. After shouting for the rest of us to zip it or face the consequences….Professor Snape managed to lead the conversation and gave the Headmaster a run through of the plan to weaken Voldemort with the potion.

T - What did the old coot think of that?

L - Don't call him that Tom, I know you don't agree with everything Dumbledore does but that doesn't mean you have to be rude.

T - Fine…what did he of the sparkly purple robes think of that?

L - I'll let that one pass. He thought it was highly dangerous and was very concerned that Professor Snape had involved a group of students, on top of not consulting him.

T - Did you tell him it worked?

L - Of course. He calmed down a bit but was still upset with Snape. I felt very sorry for the Professor, he looked quite ashamed and sad.

T - He'll be fine. Dumbledore has forgiven worse. It will be forgotten by the morning.

L - I hope so.

T - What happened next?

L - Well next we told him about you.

T - Darn, I was hoping I might have been left out of it.

L - We promised to tell him everything.

T - Shall I pack my travel bag? One way first class ticket to Azkaban?

L - No. He still doesn't know where you are, or that the diary can still be used to contact you.

T - I suppose if he did we wouldn't be speaking now.

L - Probably not.

T - What does he know then?

L - That you are a former Horcrux that has become human, that we have been speaking for years and that you helped us in the plan against Voldemort. That you are in a safehouse in an undisclosed location.

T - So he couldn't persuade Snape to give me up then?

L - He tried, the Professor refused to tell him where you were until he had heard the full story and understood. We also told him very strongly that we all trust you and are willing to vouch for you.

T - Thankyou Luna.

L - It's true.

T - So, you told all. Does that mean Potter and his friends know about me now too? They were there weren't they?

L - No, they were sent away after they had told their part about being tied up during our attack on Voldemort and how we stole Harry's cloak. They still don't know a thing about you.

T - Well that's something. What is Dumbledore doing now?

L - Still talking with Professor Snape, he's giving him a more detailed review of the potion used on Voldemort and they called Professor Moody in to discuss a possible follow up attack on Voldemort whilst he's vulnerable.

T - Professor who?

L - Moody. He's the Defence teacher this year. Didn't I tell you about him?

T - No.

L - Oh he's very good Tom. Albeit very strange. He's an Auror. Quite a talented one, but somewhat eccentric. He has a glass eye that can see through things and a false leg. A little intimidating if I'm honest but still very good. I like him.

T - Hold on, I think I've heard of this man. I was told about him during the first war, he captured dozens of the Death Eaters, had quite a reputation for it.

L - That's right. People call him Mad Eye Moody these days which I think is rather mean but he doesn't seem to mind.

T - So that's the man Crouch was going to mimic.

L - Who?

T - Barty Crouch Junior, the Death Eater who was working with Voldemort. They had a ridiculous plan to kidnap this Moody guy and have Crouch take his place in the school for the year then kidnap Potter using a portkey disguised as the Tri-tournament cup.

L - Why the cup? Harry isn't in the Tournament.

T - They were going to manipulate things to get him in. Then somehow help him win I suppose.

L - All that to kidnap him? You're right that is a ridiculous plan.

T - I'm slightly ashamed any version of me came up with it.

L - I'm glad they didn't kidnap Professor Moody, I've learned a lot from him this year.

T - Good, I'm relieved you finally have a half decent defence teacher.

L - Professor Lupin was good.

T - He was a Werewolf who forgot his wolfsbane and almost killed you.

L - That was an accident.

T - That was careless and reckless!

L - Let's agree to disagree.

T - No, I don't agree to that!

L - I think Professor Snape would be a good Defence teacher.

T - Don't change the subject.

L - He wants the job, everyone says so.

T - We are still discussing the werewolf.

L - I don't know why Dumbledore always refuses.

T- Luna!

L - I suppose it's because they never last past one year.

T - Like the werewolf didn't, because he was reckless.

L - He doesn't want Professor Snape to leave.

T - Like the wolf did.

L - And if Snape taught Defence who would teach potions?

T - You and the twins?

L - Oh, you've decided to join my part of the conversation then?

T - You would have ignored my part forever wouldn't you?

L - Yes.

T - Luna?

L - Yes Tom?

T - I really can't wait to meet you.

L - I can't wait either.

T - Assuming Dumbledore accepts that I'm not the villain my other self was.

L - Anymore.

T - Ouch Luna, ouch.

L - You were somewhat sinister.

T - I was not.

L - You tried to get me to crucio my classmates

T - That was a joke.

L - You asked me to kill Hagrid's roosters.

T - Also a joke.

L - Tried to tell me I could tame a Dragon by saying Bippity Boppity Boo.

T - I'm a funny guy.

L - Hilarious.

T - Glad you agree.

L - I'm glad we're friends. I don't think I would like to be enemies.

T - I wouldn't ether, you're terrifying.

L - I am not.

T - You chased me with giant Nargles.

L - You invaded my mind.

T - And it was terrifying.

L – I would love to have a look in yours.

T – You wouldn't. It's not a good place.

L – I would. I'm sure you still think it's full of darkness but I know if I looked I would find sweet dreams and kittens named Belle somewhere in there.

T – Only you would even think to look for that in my mind. No one else would.

L – No one else knows you like I do.

T – That's true.

L – Dumbledore will understand you've changed. I'll make him.

T – What if he doesn't?

L – Then we can run away.

T – Run where?

L – Everywhere. The whole world.

T – It's a nice dream.

L – Its not a dream. It's a plan.

T – It's a good plan.

L – Better than your plans.

T – Ouch Luna. Ouch.

81. Surprise

Tom reclined on the sofa as the rat scampered about making dinner.

It was odd being human again, it should have been exciting, a new adventure, he had been anticipating it for so long now and yet here he was, stuck in an old safe house with Peter Pettigrew.

Tom had mixed feelings about the rat. On the one hand he was loyal and helpful and useful to have around. He was also polite and not wholly bad company. On the other hand, he was a bit annoying and Tom still hadn't entirely forgiven him for that time the rodent peed on him as a diary. More importantly he had once threatened Luna which was not Ok.

To be fair he had almost redeemed himself when he risked opening the box that could have melted his eyes to help Tom with his potion. Almost.

The former Horcrux still took a little pleasure in scaring the Death Eater however.

"That dinner better be the best thing I've ever tasted, or I will be searching for a new minion by morning" he growled with a hint of warning.

Maybe the man had spent too long as a rat, he honestly squeaked.

"Yes, yes my Lord, it will be I promise"

In truth Tom knew he wouldn't hurt the rodent, but Peter didn't need to know that, and it was funning to see him running around like a headless chicken fussing over every little detail.

A ringing pulled the newly corporeal young man out of his thoughts.

The doorbell? Snape must be back.

"Pettigrew, get that!"

The rat ran out of the kitchen looking nervous still clutching a mixing bowl in his anxious hands.

He checked the newly reinforced wards to confirm it was in fact the Potions Master at the door and then released the locks to let him in.

Tom watched from his seat as Snape stepped in looking tense. He was about to ask what was wrong when the man glanced back behind himself and gestured for someone to come forwards.

A moment later Tom found himself on his feet, staring at a young woman in a uniquely personalised Hogwarts uniform. A small part of him mind took note of the long blonde hair, the silvery eyes, the wand balanced carefully behind her ear and the radish earrings but most of his mind was crying out a single word which he couldn't keep inside;

"Luna!"

The girl stared at him for a moment and then she was moving and before Tom knew what was happening he was wrapped in what may have been the warmest most genuine hug he had ever received.

Letting his arms fall around her shoulders he held on tight as Snape watched with mild amusement. A confused Pettigrew who had attempted to jump to Toms defence when Luna had run towards him lay restrained on the floor wrapped in ropes Snape had had the quick thinking to throw at him.

It was a good job too because Tom was sure if the rat had managed to lay a hand on Luna he really would be looing for a new minion.

"What? What are you doing here?! He laughed, giddy with surprise, pulling back slightly to look at her "Not that I'm complaining….I…..this is amazing….I'm so happy to see you." He pulled her back into the hug again, unwilling to let go. Luna laughed too, hugging him back.

"I'm happy to see you too. Oh Tom this is so exciting! You look just like your picture."

"You look just like your drawing!"

It was Snape that answered the question.

"It is taking longer than expected to get Dumbledore to listen, in the meantime Miss Lovegood was getting anxious and it was beginning to affect her schoolwork. The twins assisted in finding us a route out of the school. I am going to be in a lot of trouble for this when we go back but she insisted on finally meeting you."

"Why didn't you tell me you were coming?" Tom asked Luna without accusation, still smiling widely. Finally letting go of the girl he let his hands slide down to find hers grasping her fingers lightly and giving a gentle squeeze which she returned.

"I wanted it to be a surprise" The blonde smiled happily.

The brightness of it was infectious "It was."

"We only have a short time" Snape informed them, breaking the mood slightly. "Technically I have removed a student from school grounds illegally and I'm in enough trouble already. I may not have a job for much longer."

"Oh Professor I'm sorry, I didn't think…"

"Don't worry miss Lovegood, I was perfectly aware of my actions and their consequences. Just enjoy your meeting, we will leave in one hour."

One hour, it wasn't much but it was what they had, and they were going to make the most of it.

"Pettigrew make us tea." Tom ordered the man tied on the floor.

Snape untied the ropes and the rat ran back to the kitchen with a hurried "Yes Master"

Snape followed and left the two friends to their privacy.

Tom reached up a hand to poke one of Lunas earrings. And the girl laughed, "Do you like them?"

The young man wasn't entirely sure what they were meant to do and was afraid to ask but his response came honestly and without hesitation "I love them"

"I can make you some if you like" Luna offered with a half genuine and half teasing grin "And a cork necklace to keep away nargles"

Tom couldn't help but laugh out at that thinking of how ridiculous he would look but at the same time knowing in that moment that he would probably wear anything Luna gave him. "Luna, that would be amazing. We can have a matching set."

Lunas smiled wider, "Like a friendship necklace?"

Tom laughed again and nodded "Exactly, so everyone who sees us will know we are the best of friends and that we are well protected from the nargles"

She smacked his shoulder in a joking reprimand, well aware what his opinion on nargles was, and he tugged her down to sit with him on the sofa eager to learn everything new he could about the girl who had taken over his world so completely these last few years.

The clock ticked by.

Dinner was forgotten.

Tea was drunk.

Stories were told.

Promises were made.

An hour passed quicker than it ever had before.

"When you get back to the school, take the diary to Dumbledore" Tom told them "It's time I spoke to him"

…..

It was nearly midnight when the owl arrived at the window. Dumbledore still hadn't made contact and Tom couldn't imagine what the delay was, he was already very apprehensive about this conversation.

The necessary checks were made to ensure the bird wasn't booby trapped and Pettigrew opened the package that had been clasped in its talons.

"What is it?" Tom asked, leaning over to look.

"I'm not sure" the rat replied with honest confusion in his voice. "It looks like a…..string of corks"

Tom snatched the necklace from the mans hands in an instant and without even thinking twice placed it around his neck with a grin.

It was a little heavy and still smelled faintly of the berry wine the corks had once stoppered.

It was ugly and odd.

It was completely ridiculous.

It was perfect.

Taking the envelope it had arrived in, Tom looked inside and found a note in Lunas neat handwriting that simply read;

For luck.

The conversation with Dumbledore suddenly felt a lot less daunting.

82. SPC

Just a cheeky note to inform you that Secret Potions Club side story chapter one is now posted for anyone interested in reading it. :)

83. Dumbledore

Ducks to avoid flying projectiles.

Sorry about last night, I know it was naughty of me sending that out, sorry if I disappointed anyone :) As an apology have another chapter.

D - Tom Marvolo Riddle?

T - Uh oh, full name, I must be in trouble.

D - Am I to understand that I am in fact speaking with Tom Marvolo Riddle?

T - In the flesh. It's new.

D – Severus tells me you were a horcrux.

T – Severus is correct.

D – Please forgive me but I am finding this entire situation somewhat bizarre.

T – That should be fine, you were always pretty bizarre yourself Albus.

D – If you were a horcrux how did you become human?

T – Snape didn't tell you?

D – I am asking for your version of events.

T – I used a potion to weaken Voldemort then stole his energy to build myself a new form.

D – You say Voldemort as though he is a separate person.

T – He is.

D – Then you mean to say you no longer identify as Lord Voldemort?

T – I've developed a bit of an aversion to the name.

D – And the ideals that go with it?

T – Gone.

D – Am I to believe that you are changed from the hate filled boy I once knew?

T – I am. Ask Snape, or Luna, or the twins. They all know me.

D – I have asked them. Under Veritaserum

T – I thought the ministry restricted the use of Veritaserum?

D – Severus produced a supply for me years ago after the war when the Death Eaters scattered and I needed a way to be sure of who was an ally and who was just claiming to be to escape punishment.

T – Sneaky. Very like you. And what did your questioning of these four tell you?

D – That they trust you.

T – Do you?

D – I did once, I cared for you. I watched you change into a monster, helpless to stop it. If you are truly changed now, how can I be sure you won't change back?

T – I have things I didn't have back then.

D – Such as?

T – Peace of mind and of soul, I have hope, faith in humanity, friendship.

D – You had friends before.

T – I had followers. People who shared my ideals and were easy to manipulate.

D – And are these innocent children you call friends to become your new followers?

T – No! I'm not like that anymore.

D – How can I trust that?

T – What can I do to prove it to you?

D – I don't know what proof you could possibly give.

T - …my magic.

D – What?

T – I can swear my honesty on my magic.

D – You would be willing to do that?

T – I don't make this offer lightly, I may be more open minded now but the thought of reducing myself to a squib is still abhorrent to me.

D – Then why are you offering?

T – Because I have something more important than magic to lose now. You know you have the power to separate me from my friend and I don't want that. Luna is the best thing in my life. The others are good too. If I have to use my magic as insurance in order to keep them then I will. Does that prove my sincerity?

D – Are you sure about this?

T – I told you. Luna means a lot to me. I would risk anything for her.

D – I can see she is a remarkable girl, perhaps I have not shown her the level of notice I should have. Perhaps if I had paid more attention I would have seen when she came into contact with a dangerous horcrux and removed it before things went this far.

T – Here's another idea, perhaps if you had paid more attention she wouldn't have been kidnaped by an escaped convict!

D – Miss Lovegood has vouched for Mr Black.

T – Yes, it's all good in hindsight but you didn't know that at the time, did you?

D – A search effort was made.

T -When? When was this effort made? As I recall Lupin was the only one who had the sense to notice two students were gone and check inside the shrieking shack.

D – Remus is a brilliant man.

T – Brilliant? He looked inside the only abandoned house in close proximity to the school that happened to have a secret passage into the school. That's not brilliance that's common sense and it still took him three days! You should have thought of that. You should have been all over that place on day one!

D – I regret that I did not act sooner.

T – You were careless.

D – I have apologised to Miss Lovegood and Mr Longbottom.

T – Speaking of Neville why were you locking students out of their dorm with a murderer on the loose?

D – That was an unfortunate accident which I have also apologised for.

T – Apologise again.

D – I will.

T – Good.

D – You truly care for Luna don't you?

T – I think I have made that clear by now. She's my best friend.

D – I would like to speak with you in person.

T – How do I know you won't drag me to the aurors at the first opportunity?

D – You are asking me to place a great deal of trust in you Tom; I'm afraid I will have to ask the same of you.

T – Fair enough. Let me speak to Snape.

…

S – Tom?

T – Bring him to the safe house. It's time we get this over with.

84. Beginnings

Tom paced nervously across the room, he wished he could throw something at Pettigrew to calm his nerves but with Dumbledore on his way to the safe house the rat had been instructed to take himself elsewhere and had quickly scampered off to a new hiding place.

The waiting was the worst part, why couldn't the old man just show up already? They could have their argument and it would end however it ended and that would be that. The anticipation, the waiting, it was driving him barmy.

Tom had hoped that once he had given Severus permission to bring the Headmaster to the safe house the man would show up almost immediately but no…no the old coot had decided to be responsible for once and planned to wait until the next morning, putting contingencies in place just in case this was a trap of Tom's or some rubbish like that.

Maybe he was updating his will? Deciding which of his acquaintances should get a share of his woolly sock collection if he didn't come back.

The clock that had previously hung on the wall was now a smouldering pile of ash on the carpet. 'Serves it right' Tom thought to himself, 'taunting me like it had been with its tick tick tick'

Ok, so maybe he had over reacted a little.

The weight of the cork necklace was a constant presence that kept the former Dark Lord relatively calm as he waited to learn his fate. He rolled one of the stoppers between his fingers gently reminding himself of everything he had to gain from this meeting.

…..and everything he had to lose if it went wrong, a pessimistic little voice inside reminded him.

What is taking him so long?

Had the clock still been a clock it would currently be reading 1pm.

Tom had been awake since six that morning, waiting, wondering.

How long did….

The wards on the boundaries of the safe house began to ring.

Finally!

He probably should have followed the safety routine and checked who was outside the door before he yanked it open but he was way past that point and 'hey who else would it be? It had to be Dumbledore right?'

So he opened the door.

Lo and behold, it was Dumbledore.

"About time! Do you know how long I've been waiting?"

The old wizard's eyes widened slightly at the dramatic reception he received as Tom ushered him into the house impatiently, almost shutting the door in the face of an equally surprised Snape in his rush to get started.

Tom was reluctantly impressed by the intensity of the Potion Masters glare, feeling a slight tremor of intimidation that the former Dark Lord would never admit to out loud as the man shoved the door back open and breezed past him into the sitting area after the Headmaster.

"Sorry, didn't see you there." Tom muttered, slamming the door shut again.

If anything, the glare got worse. Tom decided it was safer to let the matter drop and return his focus to Dumbledore.

"So Albus..." The young man swung his hands about in a sweeping gesture. "Welcome to my humble abode"

The mans eyes never diverted from Tom himself. Their intensity making him uncomfortable.

"You look just as I remember you" Dumbledore noted with a hint of sadness "Before you set about twisting yourself into a man I hardly recognised"

Tom groaned in frustration, right to business then.

"Look Dumbly. I'm not here for a heart to heart where we chat about old times and wonder where it all went wrong alright, and I can tell that's where you're heading so I'm going to stop you there. I was a bad person ok? I was angry. I was misguided. I…"

He paused for a moment, not even sure himself where he was going with this.

"I was lost." He admitted finally "I was so lost I didn't even realise I was lost and I was just pushing forward with no Idea where I was going or why because all I knew was I couldn't give up. I couldn't give in. I couldn't stop fighting. I screwed up ok? I know I did. I did bad things and planned to do worse. I was a person I'm not proud of. A person I don't want to be anymore. I….I…..I don't…."

It took longer than it should have for Tom to realise he was crying, the tears running hot down his cheeks. Wow, considering he started off saying he didn't want the heart to heart that had gotten pretty deep pretty quick.

The young man scrubbed at his face with the sleeve of his robes in frustration. Ugh…why was he letting his guard down on front of this man of all people? This wasn't like him. He was Tom Riddle, formerly the baddest dark wizard in the world. He didn't cry in front of his enemies.

Except…..this wasn't his enemy…..hopefully….this was a man who had the power to give him a new life. Toms hands reached up to toy with the cork necklace again, thinking of the girl who had given it to him.

"I just want a second chance." He whispered.

Brown eyes looked up, locked with blue ones which he remembered twinkling back when this man was still inclined to smile at him. He wasn't smiling now. Or twinkling.

He just stared at Tom with unnerving focus as if peering into his half a soul.

"I want to believe you Tom"

Want to. "But?"

"But nothing. I want to believe you. I truly do."

Tom swallowed around the knot in his throat. That was hopeful right?

"You'll give me a chance?" he wondered, mind filled with thoughts of Luna, of her kind smile and all the little quirks he was still just beginning to learn. She was going to grow into such a remarkable witch. Please Merlin let me be there to see it?

Several moments passed in silence and Tom could swear he almost heard the ghostly tick tick tick of the deceased clock marking out each long second until finally…

"I will give you a chance Tom."

The words felt like freedom.

…

It wasn't as simple as that of course.

Not entirely. There were things to work out.

Details.

Even if there weren't records available identifying Tom Riddle as Lord Voldemort (and there were, it may have been little known but it was known by enough people to be a problem) he was still the far too young incarnation of a boy who had graduated Hogwarts decades ago. It wasn't like he could just reappear in magical society without comment and expect it not to cause waves. Very big tidal level waves.

They had to be smarter than that.

A new beginning needed a new Tom.

He needed a backstory that didn't involve the words; Diary, Dark Lord, Horcux or Voldemort.

He needed a name.

If there was any hope of him having a future, he needed a new past.

The following weeks were tiring for everyone, Tom and Luna stayed in contact as much as they could, unable to meet in person whilst Dumbledore was still suspicious but still talking regularly via a page of the Diary Luna still held which the old wizard didn't know about.

Mostly they talked about the creatures Luna loved so much, safe easy topics to pass the time; both wanting to discuss the future but still too nervous to make plans until they were sure there was a future to be had. She kept him up to date on events in the school, gossip among her friends, memorable moments in lessons, the mild disappointment that had been felt by the Hogwarts students when the tri-wizard tournament was won by some girl from Beauxbatons Academy.

The visiting students had returned home shortly afterwards and the final few weeks at school had passed without incident.

Tom spoke to the Headmaster a lot too, via the diary he now possessed and in person. There was a lot to discuss, promises to be made, the old man still wasn't entirely trusting of the former Horcurx, he needed to time to get to know him, to learn whether he was truly changed before he agreed anything concrete regarding Toms future.

When the school year ended Dumbledore visited the safe house more often, providing all his focus to the young orphan who had inexplicably reappeared in his life.

Tom was disappointed to say the least, he had wanted desperately to spend the summer with Luna but as the weeks passed and the summer faded he realised that was not going to happen.

Once September rolled around everything was in place, Dumbledore had contented himself that Tom was not a threat and that his desire to start anew was genuine. The promised vow on his magic had been made as a contingency however, just in case. He was the wizard formerly known as Lord Voldemort after all.

From that point on plans had been set in motion.

All necessary documentation was created and put in place. (Where Snape had found a forger was anyone's guess but apparently the former Death Eater had retained a few less than reputable connections since his return to the light.)

The future looked promising and bright in a way it hadn't looked in a very long time.

By the time the gates of Hogwarts swung open ready for a new year Tom Marvolo Riddle was no more.

Thomas Belle was ready to begin his new life.

Sorry for the wait, it took a while to get this one where I wanted it.

85. Sorted

SH = sorting hat

The room was quiet, the same calm respectful air of anticipation that every sorting received, only a select few people in the room were aware of the gravity of this particular sorting. Aware of who the mysterious transfer student really was, showing up out of nowhere to join the fifth year students. Technically he should be going into his sixth year but as Luna was only going to be starting her fourth year Tom decided that since he was reinventing himself anyway there was no reason not to pretend to be a little younger so they could spend three years at the school together before he graduated.

Everyone who knew the truth about Tom was sure they knew how it would go. He had been sorted once before and there was no reason to think he would be placed differently this time.

Luna was nervous, she wondered what would happen when Tom started making other friends in Slytherin. Whether he would be swayed back to his old ways of thinking. The thought scarred her, but then she felt guilty for not having more faith in her friend. He had changed hadn't he? She could trust him right?

Her internal debate was intense as the seconds ticked by and the hat remained silent, lost in its private dialogue with the wearer.

...

SH - I remember you.

T - How nice. Can we get this over with?

SH - You were sorted a long time ago. Curious that you are here again after so long, and yet still so young.

T - It's complicated.

SH - Indeed I see that. Now, where to put you? Where did I put you before? Slytherin wasn't it? Slytherin for the heir of Slytherin.

T - It was. I'm going back there I presume? I have always belonged there.

SH - Perhaps.

T - What does that mean?

SH - It means perhaps. Perhaps not.

T - Just sort me hat!

SH - As I said before. I remember you. Cunning boy. Clever. Lots of potential. Ambition. All traits suited to Sytherin of course.

T - I know that and I am still all those things.

SH - True but there are differences between the boy I once sorted and the one I see now. You were angrier then. You held a darkness within you, simmering beneath the surface. Yet I can see it isn't there anymore.

T - I...no. It isn't.

SH - There is a warmth in its place. A strength and calm. Why is that I wonder?

T - I...I made a friend.

SH - Powerful thing that.

T - She's a remarkable witch.

SH - A student as well?

T - She is. Ravenclaw.

SH - I see. I could put you in Slytherin. Put you back where you were. Where you once belonged. Where you could easily belong again. If you wanted. But maybe a new start needs a new path? Tell me Tom Riddle, heir of Slytherin, where do you want to go?

...

When a cry of RAVENCLAW echoed through the room it took her a few moments for Luna to realise what she had heard.

By the time Tom reached the table to sit beside her she was already crying and it was all she could do to accept his hug and hold on.

86. Toxic

"What are you wearing?"

Tom blinked at the bookshelf in front of him before slowly turning towards the voice, face blank. He could hear the sneer on the girls face before he saw it.

She was Slytherin, the same year as Luna by the look of her and might have been pretty if not for her nose which although normal in shape and size was scrunched up as though she could smell something foul.

Tom glanced down at his uniform then back to the girl with an arched eyebrow "Pardon?"

The girl rolled her eyes as though he was being dim and pointed an over manicured finger at his chest "What is that?"

He glanced down again then back at her matching her look of derision with one that said 'are you blind?'. "It's a cork necklace"

"Why are you wearing it?" She hissed as though personally offended by the idea.

Tom continued to stare back at her blankly, enjoying the growing irritation on her face "It keeps the Nargles away"

The former horcrux smiled internally at the matter of fact way he was able to deliver that answer, especially since he still didn't really believe in Nargles. The truth was he wore the necklace because Luna had given it to him and it never occurred to him not to wear it but this girl didn't need to know that.

For some reason his answer actually seemed to make her angry, blue eyes blazing with rage "There's no such thing as a Nargle. Don't you know that?" She stepped closer, invading his space, Tom stayed where he was refusing to be cowed. "Did Loony Lovegood tell you about them? She's always talking nonsense like that. You know you shouldn't listen to that weirdo! She's crazy."

Out of nowhere the sneer disappeared and was replaced with a forced smile that reminded Tom of a shark about to attack, the girls voice was sweet as sugar and cold as ice as she reached out a hand to brush against his necklace as if to remove it for him.

"You look like a smart guy" She told him airily "With the right friends you could go far. You just need to break away from toxic connections"

…..

"Tom!?" Luna chastised him later that evening "It's the first day of the year. How do you already have a month of detentions?"

"I have no idea Luna, I was just having a friendly chat with someone in the library and was demonstrating a perfectly harmless stinging hex…"

Now my exams are over my brain has gone on strike for a while so I've just posted this little one to let you know I'm still here. until I'm ready to get back into the swing of it :)

87. Naming

The twins sat together on the far side of the desk, each tilting their heads to the side, cheeks pillowed in their palms and elbows resting on the table. In their typical dramatic fashion, they sat each mirroring the other so that to an observer stood behind them they appeared to frame the figure of Thomas Belle who was currently the object of their paired scrutiny.

Tom sat silent waiting for his unusual friends to explain what they wanted.

"So…" Fred began.

"…a little birdie tells us…" George continued.

"…a little blonde turnip wearing birdie…"

"…that you…"

"…you Tom…"

"…Thomas…"

"…Tommie boy…"

"…were in fact at least somewhat…"

"…partially…"

"…undeniably…"

"…implicitly…"

"…involved in or otherwise responsible…"

"…for a certain potion-based prank…"

"…of which we took keen interest…"

"…very keen…"

"…the same prank which in fact brought to our most attentive attention the aforementioned birdie"

Tom's eyebrow raised in speculation as the tirade continued.

"And so Tommy…" George continued.

"…why is it…" Fred asked "…that we only now…"

"…after these long months of friendship…"

"…learn that our good old Tommy boy is in fact…"

"…a fellow prankster?"

After waiting a moment to ensure they had finally finished Tom leaned forward on his elbows, fingers steepled as he considered them both carefully, weighing his answer.

"Well….to be perfectly honest boys…" He answered finally. "...you didn't ask"

The twins turned to look at each other's faces baffled.

"Well….he's got us there Fred"

"I make you right George"

"So where do we go from here then?"

"If I may" Tom interjected "I think the answer is quite simple. As of this moment we, along with Luna represent four very talented, very able pranksters. I would say the only suitable course to take would be to join together and put our combined talents to good use."

The two Weasleys eyes widened in amazement, glazing over somewhat as two keen minds aligned almost perfectly in the way only twins can and as one they whispered three words that Hogwarts might never be ready to hear.

"The new Marauders!"

Across the castle in their respective offices Albus Dumbledore, Minerva McGonagall and Severus Snape each felt an inexplicable chill run up their spines.

….

"We need a name" Fred declared. "Something that we can call ourselves. A noble name that will endure through the ages, like The Marauders except obviously not that. Something original. Something that's ours"

"How about the Nargalists?" Tom suggested with a smirk which only grew when Luna punched him playfully in the arm.

"Trouble makers" George ventured half-heartedly. They all winced, even George himself.

"Too cheesy" Fred shuddered. "And not really what we're about. We don't want trouble, do we? Just fun. A way to express our creativity and ingenuity"

They all nodded in agreement.

"The inventors" tried Luna.

"Not bad. We'll put that under maybe"

"The mad scientists." Tom tried again. They all laughed.

"I kind of like that" Luna giggled. "We could each use a famous mad scientist name as a nickname"

"Dibs on Dr Jekyll" Tom laughed. "Luna you can be Dr Dolittle" She punched him again, smiling wide even as she shook her head.

George frowned. "It's good and I like it I do but…I still don't think it's quite us. I mean, what are we guys? We are…..we are…." He began to pace in agitation.

"…we are talented….. we are creative….. we are skilled. We are inventors, invigorators, pioneers. We are artisans of the fine craft of pranking"

"That's it!"

"Hit it on the head brother"

"It's perfect"

"What?"

"The Artisans. That's our name."

George frowned and thought it over before breaking into a grin "Oh. You're right. It's perfect. That was easy."

"I wonder if The Marauders figured out their name that quickly?"

….

Many years earlier….

"For the last time Sirius we are not calling ourselves The Black Bandits!"

"Well its better than The Four Mischief-eers Prongs"

Remus sighed. "At this rate we'll graduate before we call ourselves anything."

88. Rivals

"Is that the latest Quibbler?"

Tom looked up at the boy in front of him, who was peering to get a look at the magazine in his hand, surprised by the question.

"Yes" He answered suspiciously, wondering if this was one of the students who had been giving Luna trouble "I'm reading an article on the movements of Filly Flies"

To be fair he was only reading the thing to humour his friend but if this boy even dared to laugh at the girl's beliefs Tom was prepared to step up and defend them regardless.

Instead the kid smiled brightly and moved closer "I went on an expedition to track Filly Flies last year"

That caught Toms interest instantly and he took a moment to fully look over the boy in front of him, brown hair, soft green eyes, a light spattering of freckles across his cheeks. He was a little shorter than Tom had imagined him but the former Horcrux had no doubts about who had just approached him. With a slightly forced smile he stood up and held out his hand in greeting "Thomas Belle" He introduced himself "You must be Rolf. Luna has told me so much about you."

There was a momentary flash of surprise on the boy's face that he quickly covered, looking back at Tom with renewed interest. Ignoring the hand that the newly housed Ravenclaw was still holding out to him, the young man instead looked him up and down critically before allowing his lips to twist into a smirk that would have made a Slytherin proud.

"Really?" He said with a tone that was just a tad too sweet "That's odd. She's never mentioned you"

…..

Fred and George watched on as Tom shifted angrily through the store cupboard in their secret potions classroom, every so often an item would come flying out the door or else a crashing and or clattering sound would echo out into the quiet room. Above the racket he was making Tom was maintaining a constant tirade of irate muttering which from the snippets the boys could hear went along the lines of;

"..smarmy brat.."

"..gonna show him…"

"..mine first.."

"..turn his skin green.."

"..and slimy.."

"..don't know what she sees.."

"..totally not cute.."

George rested his chin on his fist and watched as another text book flew past. "Any idea?" He asked his brother.

"Not a clue" Fred responded. "He just showed up ranting about five minutes before you and hasn't said a word."

George hummed in understanding "Should we be worried?"

A jar of grasshoppers came flying out of the cupboard and shattered against the stone floor just before a loud crash and string of curses sounded within. Fred looked at his brother in alarm "Someone should"

…

It took another three days and some clever snooping to determine the root of the problem. The clever snooping involved two days of trying and failing to follow Tom around covertly before eventually giving up and asking Luna if she knew anything. She didn't but once she knew there was something going on it didn't take her long to drag the truth out of Tom.

"Why are you upset with Rolf?" She asked in amazement "He's a very nice boy. I thought you two would be friends. I was going to introduce you this weekend"

Tom looked like he was plotting murder and given that he was once Lord Voldemort he very well might be. "Were you? Were you really? Because according to him you've never mentioned me."

Luna pulled a face "Of course I never mentioned you before. What was I supposed to say? I have a friend named Tom who lives in a book and is one part of the soul of an evil tyrant."

That was a fair point but Tom was too annoyed to admit to it.

"You could have at least mentioned you had a friend named Tom."

Luna just huffed in equal frustration. "I didn't feel the need. To be fair I never intended to mention him to you either. If I hadn't mixed my diaries up that one time I wouldn't have".

"Why not?" Tom demanded. "Why didn't you want me to know about him? What's the big secret?"

Luna looked confused for a moment "There's no secret. At the time you were both my friends in different ways, I didn't feel any need to mix you."

"Well that's lovely isn't it? So glad I get to be one half of your little double life"

The blonde girl stepped back, shocked at the bitter tone the boy was using. He hadn't been this rude to her since the first few months when they had started talking. "It's not a double life. That's just how things were due to the circumstances. You were a book Tom. You remember that right?"

"Oh so it's my fault?"

Luna threw her hands up in frustration.

"What is your fault? I don't know why this is a problem? I was going to introduce you. Did you and Rolf have an argument of something?"

Tom didn't answer just grit his teeth for a moment before finally turning around and storming out of the room.

The girl turned towards her other friends with wide eyes, hoping they could shed some light on the situation.

Fred scratched behind his ear in contemplation "You know, if I didn't know any better, I'd say that boy is jealous"

"Why?" Luna wondered.

….

Rolf was green.

Tom was amused.

Luna was not.

"Why would you do that?" She demanded, irritation clear.

Tom just smirked back "I think it suits him"

Fred and George stepped back sensing the danger in the room as Luna scowled. The anger looked out of place on her and any other day Tom might have been alarmed by it.

"I want you to apologise" She hissed.

The other Ravenclaw blanched "Apologise? To that little brat?"

Lunas eyes were fierce as she pointed her finger at him accusingly "You're the brat"

"Am not."

"Are too"

"Am not"

"Are too"

"Am not"

A crunch from the left distracted the two from their argument and they both turned to look at the twins, matching frowns settling on to their features at what they saw.

All the fight left Luna as she tilted her head to the side in confusion "When did you get popcorn?"

…

"I'm sorry that you are such an annoying brat that it was necessary to turn your skin green"

"Tom!" Luna elbowed him in the ribs and Tom felt his annoyance grow as he saw Rolf smirk.

"I'm very sorry I turned you green" He grit out.

"That's alright" The young boy smiled, voice once again just too sweet. Too deliberate "I was taught that in petty conflicts it is always better to be the bigger person. I forgive you"

Tom smiled back and mimicked his tone "Thank you"

Luna smiled at both of them, considering the issue settled and set to pouring them all tea.

The little gathering passed quickly enough, the discussion centring mainly on creatures Tom was almost certain didn't exist but these two did and he refused to put himself in a position where they both turned against him as a sceptic.

Thankfully he had heard enough about this nonsense the last few years that he could easily hold his own as him and the Hufflepuff demon strived to outdo each other about who knew more.

Luna grinned, excited that Tom was finally taking an interest in her creatures and apparently oblivious to the battle being fought in front of her.

…

"Fred?" George wondered aloud a week later.

"Yes brother of mine?"

George rolled over where he was laying on the common room floor in front of the fireplace "This thing with Tom and Rolf…"

"Yes?"

"What are they fighting over?"

Fred lifted his head up to stare at the other boy over the arm of his armchair like he was crazy "Luna. Obviously"

George rolled his eyes and kicked his leg up at him "I know that. What I mean is what are they fighting for? Is this a best friend thing or a romantic thing?"

The other twin sat up with a frown. "I don't know"

George sat up too, moving to a cross legged position "Do you think Tom does?"

Fred shook his head. "I have my doubts"

…

Tom was pink

Rolf was amused

The twins were reluctantly impressed with the young Hufflepuff.

Luna was done with all of them.

So so so sorry for neglecting this story for so long. I have been really struggling to focus on anything recently. Its not abandoned I promise.

I'm going to be honest, I'm as unsure as Fred and George about Toms intention here but I really wanted this rivalry to happen.

There are still a lot of plot lines I am working on that will be followed soon, main questions to be answered include, what happened to Peter Pettigrew and what is Voldemort up to?

Thanks to anyone still reading. xx

89. Commonality

About three weeks into what had become an extremely intense prank war between Tom and Rolf the former horcrux decided to bring in reinforcements.

To avoid upsetting Luna the twins refused to side with either boy, however they also refused to be left out of the fun when there were tricks to be played, so for the sake of fairness they instead divided their efforts, with Fred helping Rolf and George assisting Tom. It was the first time the two brothers had ever been pitted against one another and thus far the results had been both terrifying and spectacular.

All in all they were both having terrific fun, which was more than could be said for Tom or Rolf.

Fred brought the goblet to his lips, the smell of pumpkin juice familiar and safe as he prepared to wash down his breakfast.

George grinned at him from across the table wiggling his eyebrows in challenge

"Go on, drink it. I dare you"

The other boy paused, suddenly suspicious and far less ready to drink the juice than he had been a moment before. For a second he considered putting the goblet back down but that feeling was quickly dismissed with a shrug and an amused grin towards his twin / temporary enemy.

"Bottoms up"

He downed the lot.

A slightly sharp aftertaste followed the usual sweetness of the juice, although that was easily forgotten in the next moment when a spine-tingling zap of electricity ran through his body from the tips of his toes right up to the top of his head, it was like a full body static shock, not painful exactly, just jolting.

"WOW!" Fred howled, grin even wider than before and eyes comically wide "Just…wow"

George laughed in amusement doubled over at the waist and several others nearby joined in at the sight of Fred's hair of which every strand was now sticking up on end.

"When did you come up with that?" The still electrified teen asked.

"PS has been helping me develop it." George admitted, using their coded nickname for the Potions Professor just in case of eavesdroppers. Despite his fairly good relationship with his little potions club the Professor still had a reputation in this school and he was determine to keep it.

"Awesome" Fred grinned back flexing his fingers to relieve the tinging feeling running through them.

A loud shriek from the Hufflepuff table and subsequent laughter from Ravenclaw let Fred know he wasn't the only one who had, had a shocking experience this breakfast time.

….

"I've had enough."

Two sets of identical eyes looked up from the homework that was spread in front of them, temporary ceasefire declared in the face of Charms essays. Despite popular opinion the two troublemakers did actually do homework, sometimes, usually.

"Enough my dear Luna? Whatever do you mean?"

The girl pulled out a chair and sat down, resting her chin in her palm, looking every bit as frustrated as she felt. "Why can't they just get along?"

Charms was very quickly forgotten.

"Do you want us to stop helping them?" Fred asked, voice gentle and sincere. However much fun they were having neither boy wanted to upset their friend if this rivalry was truly distressing her.

"We can tell them to pack it in if you like" George agreed. "I'm sure if they knew you were this bothered by it they would let it go. They both care about you."

Luna huffed and shook her head. "That's the problem. They are both making this about me. I don't know what they want"

The twins looked to one another uncertainly. After much deliberation and investigation, they were both equally unsure what the aim of this battle was.

"Right" Fred declared decisively "There's only one thing for it"

The other two looked towards him in question and the young man rubbed his hands together in glee "You want them to get along, right?" Luna nodded "Well nothing unites people like a common enemy" George nodded too, starting to catch on "Well from this point on we are no longer siding with either of them. The Weasley triplets are back together and they are both gonna get it."

Luna beamed with amused excitement at being included in the descriptor. "What do we do?"

Charms was well and truly forgotten. "Luna my dear, I'm glad you asked"

…

"Duck!" Two sets of feet sped through the corridors, dodging and diving as a swarm of exploding pellets chased them down. As each little ball struck its target a different effect was felt, some of them releasing bad smells, others releasing clouds of colourful powders or paints and others still causing bizarre sensations such as zaps, itching, tingling or in one case an unexplained full body stickiness that wasn't related to any actual substance and therefore could not be washed away.

The pellets had started harmlessly enough, one or two appearing throughout the day, each intent on their target and carefully avoiding any other students, but as the day went on the quantity of projectiles striking at once had gradually increased until a small cloud of the things was hovering about ready to attack, and the unfortunate recipients were forced to take evasive action.

For the first few hours both victims had assumed the other was responsible for their plight until they had come head to head, both running from the ever-increasing swarms that were chasing them. In an instant the two clouds merged forming one sinister mass of flying mischief and without thinking both boys found themselves running side by side, too intent on escaping the swarm to worry about their ongoing rivalry.

"In here" Tom screeched diving for a store cupboard. Rolf had just enough time to squeeze through the door after him before it slammed shut, the sound of a dozen or more of the pellets ricocheted off the other side.

"Great" Rolf muttered in irritation "Now I'm stuck in here with you"

Tom felt his hackles rise in irritation "I could have left you out there you know!"

Silence was his only answer for a brief period before the other boy slumped slightly, reluctantly accepting the truth of the statement "Thanks I guess"

More silence.

Even in the dark space both boys managed to maintain full strength glares that between them could have melted rock. It was going to be a long wait.

….

Outside the cupboard three figures stood staring at the door. The swarm of pellets had been banished but for security's sake a charm had been set up to cause a persistent tapping sound on the wood imitating the attack and keeping the two captives from attempting an early escape.

"Are we sure they aren't going to kill each other?" Luna wondered out loud, only slightly joking.

"They'll be fine" George assured her.

Fred nodded in agreement "A few hours in there should be enough to cool them off. Now, let's get some dinner"

…..

1 hour later

Silence still reigned, punctuated occasionally by the loud rumbling of hungry stomachs.

"I hate you"

"Ditto"

…

2 hours

"This is your fault you know."

Toms head shot up from where he had been dozing against the wall "My fault? How by Merlin's beard do you figure that? You started this!"

"Did not"

"Did too"

"Did not"

"Did too"

"Did not, did not, did not!"

"Did too, did too, did too. You and your stupid smarmy smirk."

"I am not smarmy!" Rolf hissed in outrage.

"Are too"

"Am not"

"Are too"

"Am….ugh…I'm not doing this"

Tom snorted "Quitter"

"I'm not a quitter, I'm just not lowering myself to your level."

"That's what a quitter would say"

"Is not."

"Is too"

"Is not"

"Is too

"Is…darn it I'm not doing this!"

"That means I won" Tom declared curtly.

Rolf didn't respond and silence stretched out for a good few minutes before…

"Does not"

…..

4 hours

"There was a good reason she didn't tell you about me you know? It doesn't mean anything"

"What reason?" Rolf asked, struggling to keep the yawn from his voice. He was fairly sure they were nearing curfew.

"I can't tell you" Tom muttered in irritation "But it was a good reason"

Rolf snorted "Sure"

…..

5 hours

"She did mention you once"

Tom blinked awake half sure that he had dreamed that "Hu?"

"Luna. She did mention you. Sort of. When we were tracking the filly flies. We caught sight of a herd of unicorns as we were passing through the Trunan forest and she said something about 'I can't wait to tell Tom about this' I don't know if she was just talking to herself but I heard her"

Tom felt a fond smile tug at his lips remembering the conversation that he had had with the young woman about those unicorns and the differences she had noted between them and the ones she had encountered at Hogwarts; most significant being the gold foals, a stark contrast to the pure white ones she had discovered, which her subsequent research had revealed to be a rare anomaly.

"She loves unicorns" he mumbled tiredly.

"I know" Rolf agreed.

…..

5 and a half hours

"Do you like Luna?"

Tom blinked at the question, eyebrows rising in shock.

"Of course I like her. She's my best friend."

Rolf sighed "Yeah but…do you like, like her?"

"Like, like?"

"Do you want to be her boyfriend?" The question was rough with a tinge of hostility.

Tom thought about it for a moment nose wrinkling in concentration "I've never thought about it. I…I don't think I do." He admitted finally "She's…she's everything to me but…not like that…I just want to be close to her…be part of her world."

Across the cupboard Rolf's whole form relaxed. "Really?"

"Yeah"

"Ok" Seconds ticked by. "I like her" Rolf admitted quietly "Like, like"

Tom thought about it for a moment and let out a huff. "I figured."

"Is that a problem?" The young Hufflepuff challenged him.

Tom sighed, knowing that he was not going to escape this conversation "Yeah. A little"

He could hear the frown on Rolf face "Why? If you don't like her like that then why can't I?"

Gritting his teeth the former Horcrux forced himself to answer "Because she's all I have. Well…" HE paused "...not anymore I guess, I have other friends and stuff but…she's the most important part of my life. I don't want her to go away. To forget me."

He heard Rolf shuffle to sit up straight "Is that why you don't like me? You think I'm trying to steal her? That she'll choose me and leave you behind?"

Hearing his fears voiced out loud was more distressing than Tom expected.

"Isn't that how it normally goes? People start dating and their friends get pushed into second place?"

The softness in the younger boy's voice was a strange contrast to the hostility Tom had come to expect from him.

"Not always. Not if its done right. Besides, since when does Luna do anything normally?"

Tom snorted. "Fair point"

"Anyway.." Rolf sighed "..even if I wanted to push you out, which I don't by the way, but if I did, she wouldn't let me. You're important to her Tom. Always will be. Anyone can see it."

Tom closed his eyes trying to get himself under check "Really?"

"Really" Rolf assured him. "You're her best friend. I would never try to come between that"

Deep breath.

"Thanks, I guess"

"I don't even know if she likes me back" Rolf admitted sounding oddly vulnerable.

Tom bit his lip for a moment, considering saying nothing.

"She does" He confessed finally "She…said you're cute"

…

6 hours

"I think it's past curfew" Rolf muttered.

"Probably" Tom agreed.

"We can't stay here all night."

"True"

Both boys groaned in resignation. Hunger and tiredness finally overriding their fear of the menacing swarm.

"Ok then, I may regret this but…open the door"

Two wands were raised defensively, ready to give as good as they got when the swarm descended. A sure hand grasped the handle and as the door swung open the two boys jumped together into the hallway to meet….nothing.

"Where are they?"

Tom lowered his wand as Rolf continued to peer about in confusion, still anticipating an attack.

"Oh Merlin." The elder boy groaned "They're gone! We've been sitting in there for nothing!"

Rolf blinked, understanding dawning. "Aww heck."

A loud rumble reminded both boys that they had missed dinner and both groaned.

"I'm heading back past the kitchens anyway" The young Hufflepuff pointed out. "Want to come with me and see if we can talk the house elves into fixing us a snack?"

Tom smiled, finally warming to the other boy. "That's the best plan I've heard all day"

90. Message

To the traitorous creature who dares to call itself a part of my most glorious Lord Voldemort. This is Barty Crouch Jr. Loyal Servant to the Dark Lord. It is my greatest pleasure to inform you that we have your rat and unless you hand yourself over to us immediately we will execute him without mercy. You have two days.

….

Tom stared at the diary page on the Headmasters desk. The message had appeared at some point last night.

Dumbledore sat straight in his seat peering intently at the young man over to top of his spectacles. Luna, Snape and the twins all stood on Tom's side of the desk, the five of them forming a semicircle as they each leaned closer to read the message.

Tom sighed heavily as he looked up to meet the headmaster's eye.

"I suppose we have to rescue him"

To his left Snape pulled a face and crossed his arms, "Do we? I'm quite comfortable just leaving him there"

"Professor!" Luna chided him in outrage. "We can't just leave him! They'll kill him"

"To be fair Luna" George reasoned calmly "Is that really a bad thing? He's not exactly a good guy"

Fred nodded in agreement.

"Neither was I" Tom reminded them, voice level but sad. "In fact I was far worse than him."

Intense brown eyes turned towards his friends, urging them to understand "You gave me a second chance. I owe him the same. He did help me after all. At great risk to himself at times"

The mood in the room was tense as the group let his words sink in. Luna reached over to grasp her friends hand and gave it a squeeze to show how proud she was of how far he had come. Tom smiled at her warmly.

Finally Snape uncrossed his arms again with a huff. "Fine, but I want it known that I am not happy about it"

"Severus my boy" Dumbledore smiled serenely, with just a hint of teasing "When are you ever happy about anything?"

If the response was less than appropriate for polite company the small group of students pretended not to hear.

…..

"How did they even get Pettigrew? I thought he was staying in your safe house?" Snape asked.

Tom nodded in agreement. "He was. I think. I haven't actually spoken to him in a while. Probably should have checked in on him more frequently."

"So do you think they got into the safe house? Or did he go out?" Fred asked.

"Not sure."

George frowned as a though occurred to him. "Are we certain they even do have him? Maybe they're just saying they do?"

"They have his dairy page otherwise they wouldn't have been able to send the message"

"That doesn't mean they have him. He could have slipped away. He's pretty good at that after all"

Tom brightened for a moment at the possibility. "Hu. Good point. He might have"

"Has anyone actually checked the safe house to find out?" Snape asked, his irritation clear to see.

Silence was the only answer as everyone looked to Dumbledore as he was the first to have seen the message before calling them all there.

"Severus…" The headmaster began slowly, "…I have a task for you"

Snape closed his eyes and counted to ten. Sometimes life really did love to test his patience.

…

"So he's definitely not here" Tom concluded looking around at the empty house.

"Your powers of observation astound" Snape responded dryly.

Tom didn't bother to snark back, he was already well used to the blunt attitude of the former Death Eater and since the others had stayed behind at the school he had no one to impress by talking back.

The boy was slowly accepting that he really wasn't the Dark Lord anymore, he was just another student, and former follower or not Snape was his teacher. That wouldn't stop Tom being sarcastic most of the time but from time to time he was happy to just let it slide.

"They must have ambushed him outside the house then."

"Brilliant deduction"

Tom gave a tight smile and once again didn't bother to respond.

"I think they do have him. If Peter had gotten away he would have returned here."

This time the Potions Masters tone was sincere. "I think you're right"

The two exchanged a look before silently making their way out of the protective wards to apparate back to the school and give the others the bad news.

…..

"So what are we going to do?"

Albus steepled his fingers and leaned forward. "I think, given the circumstances the best course of action would be to bring in additional help"

"What help?" Snape asked.

The headmaster took a moment to breathe, knowing his next suggestion would not be popular. "I think we should involve some Aurors"

The reaction was pretty much as expected "Are you crazy?" George cried.

"They would arrest Pettigrew" Fred pointed out. "We're supposed to be saving him"

"What if they found out about Tom?" Luna asked, worry lacing her voice.

Dumbeldore raised his hand motioning for silence. "I have considered all of this but I stand by my suggestion. Thanks to Toms reanimation Voldemort is weakened but killing him does not seem to be possible as he is still being kept alive by the Horcuxes, Tom himself included. The next available option is arresting him. Perhaps we should have acted sooner and I regret that we didn't but this could be our opportunity to rid the world of Voldemort best way available, by putting him in Azkaban. It is for this reason I think we should alert the Aurors."

"Why haven't we alerted them before?" Luna wondered.

"We tried" Snape muttered darkly. "Whoever received our message didn't want to believe Voldemort was back so they dismissed it as a hoax."

"Why should they believe us now then?" Tom asked.

"We aren't going to tell them about Voldemort" Dumbledore informed them "We are going to alert them to Death Eater activity in Voldemort's location and let them find him."

Snape groaned "Wonderful, we're going to help capture the Dark Lord himself and get no credit for it"

"I'm with the Professor here" George "I can see an Order of Merlin and a lifetime of free passes with my mum slipping away"

Fred snorted in amusement. "I can live with someone else getting the credit" he conceded, relieved when none of the others made any real effort to argue otherwise "But that still doesn't answer our previous questions. What about Tom and Pettigrew"

Dumbledore once again raised his hand "I have considered this and I think the best course of action would be to stage a rescue for Pettigrew, if possible render both Voldemort and Crouch unconscious or immobile so they don't escape then get out before we alert the Aurors"

"Oh is that all?" Snape cried out sarcastically "Just sneak up on Voldemort and his crazy follower, knock them both out and rescue his captive all on my own. No big deal."

"You will not be on your own my boy"

The potions master pulled a face. "Wont I? Because I certainly won't be taking any of these children with me."

Dumbledore sighed, wondering when his friend's faith in him had fallen so low. "Severus, I will be coming with you"

"Oh." Snape paused in shock. "Are you sure?"

"Very sure."

The room was silent for a moment, everyone thinking over the plan.

"What can we do?" Luna wondered out loud, not comfortable being left behind doing nothing whilst two of her teachers ran into danger.

"I want you to go to the Safe House" Dumbledore told them. "Brew some healing potions ready for Pettigrew's arrival just in case. He might not need them but we don't know what state he will be in when we get him back. I also need you to be ready to alert the Aurors and send them to our location as soon as Pettigrew is safe."

The students nodded in understanding.

"Ok" Snape said, standing back and glancing around the room. "We seem to have a plan. When do we put it into action?"

"Can you locate them?" Dumbledore asked Tom.

The young man nodded, focusing on the connection he had with the other part of his soul.

"Then we move tonight"

Sorry to all the Tuna shippers for my last chapter. It just didn't feel like the right direction to me.

91. Believer

Peter huddled at the bottom of the enchanted trunk he was being kept in. All attempts to chew his way out as a rat had failed miserably and left him with nothing but a chipped tooth. It stung a little but was a minor inconvenience next to the various hexes Crouch had hit him with since he had been brought here.

Luckily his captors did not seem to be causing him any real harm. Yet.

Peter knew he was bait. A trap to lure his master to the crazed Death Eater and that broken remnant of Voldemort out there. He wondered how long it would take them to realise Tom wasn't coming. Reformed or not, the boy was still Tom Marvolo Riddle. He didn't care about a rat who had served his purpose. No one did.

Not even his friends had cared in the end. Hadn't cared to notice as the threads of darkness wound themselves around him and dragged him down.

Sirius had called him a coward. Betraying his friends to save his own skin.

It wasn't like that.

For all his faults Peter was a Gryffindor and as brave as any other. He wasn't a coward.

He was a believer.

He hadn't been at first of course. Not with James and Sirius and Remus around, making their opinions known. Their disapproval of that 'crazy git of a Dark Lord'.

But then Greggory Glard had come along, needing a spy on the inside. It couldn't be an Auror you see, they were all known to the Dark. It had to be someone invisible, someone inconspicuous, someone quietly clever but entirely forgettable who could blend into their ranks without notice. Someone no one would ever suspect.

No one could know of course. 'The more people who know a secret the more likely it is to be spilled' Greg told him. So no one knew. No one knew that Peters first steps into the dark had been on behalf of the light.

A year later Greggory was dead, killed in a raid and Peter was trapped, too far in and with no way out. No one to vouch for him.

He wished he could say that was when it started but it wasn't, by then the threads had already taken hold. Almost without his notice.

Surrounded by a crowd he had never dared to associate with before, caught up in the allure of promises and glamour of wealth Peter had already begun to slip.

The Dark were ridiculously well funded he found. All those pure blood families leading the way. There was a lot of finery. A lot of mystery. Night after night of extravagant parties and untold excitement that held a lot of appeal to a young boy who had grown up with little to his name.

But that wasn't what got him. What got him was the talk. The endless talk of a new world. A better world. Something had grabbed him. Somewhere along the way Peter had started listening. Truly listening.

It wasn't a quick decision, wasn't even a conscious decision really.

One day he had gone to sleep a spy, and woken up a Death Eater.

And he believed.

One child.

That's what they told him.

One child and the war would soon be over.

Would soon be won and all the death and misery and hiding would be behind them, bringing in the new world he had been promised.

Yes, it was awful.

Yes, it meant betraying James in the worst possible way, but James didn't understand the Dark Lords vision the way Peter did.

Could never understand.

Just one child. A small sacrifice in the grand scheme.

Peter was wrong.

He knew that now.

Conversations with Tom, however limited that may have been had revealed to Peter the man behind the madness.

And it was madness.

The was no glory. No better world. No grand scheme.

Just the anger and frustration of one man that had spread to others and gotten so far out of hand it had torn their world in half.

It had all been for nothing.

A muffled thud from above his enchanted prison was enough to briefly startle the rat from his musing. The distant sounds of what could almost be a struggle barely reaching through the charms that held him trapped. Peter sighed, it was probably just Crouch throwing a tantrum again and blowing up their lair.

He was just a rat, he reminded himself for the hundredth time.

No one was coming.

I can't remember if the books ever gave a reason for Peter joining the Dark but this is my spin on it. Since team Luna have decided to save him I thought it was important to make him a little more redeemable. I hope I managed it at least somewhat.

92. Angels and Demons

They weren't expecting Dumbledore.

What they were expecting was unclear, but with Crouche's unpredictable nature and Voldemort's growing madness the pair were not as much of a match as either might once have been. They were fierce of course, vicious and violent and aiming to kill but overall uncoordinated and underprepared.

They had challenged Tom to come to them alone and it seems that was what they expected, apparently unaware of his new alliances even in spite of Snape's involvement in the attack which had restored the Horcrux to his human form. Maybe he hadn't been seen? At least not well enough to identify him perhaps?

Even if they had been prepared for Snape to come with Tom the fact remained they had not expected Dumbledore.

The fight was brutal.

The fight was furious.

The fight was terrifying.

By the time the sun was edging over the horizon the next morning the fight was won.

….

"I'm staying to wait for the Aurors."

Dumbledore turned towards Severus, wide eyed and surprised. "Why?"

Severus returned the look with an eye roll "Why? Because I just helped capture Lord Voldemort and damn it I am staying to get the credit for that"

The Potions Master thrust his jaw out, daring the other man to argue, which of course he did.

"Severus are you sure that's a good idea? You were a Death Eater once, how are you going to explain why you were in a secret location with Voldemort in the first place? Especially since he is still widely presumed dead."

"I'll tell them he found a way to survive and that I was summoned here under the assumption I was still loyal and I took to opportunity to double cross him."

"Severus…"

"Albus I have earned this! Years of loyalty, multiple dangerous missions both at the end of the war and then in this last year alone. I can't just let a bunch of random, probably Gryffindor Aurors get rewarded for my work. Please just let me have this?" There was an almost desperate lit to the man's voice now, urging the headmaster to understand.

Dumbledore still did not look convinced but with a deep resignation decided not to argue any further "Very well. Best of luck my friend. You're about to become a hero of the wizarding world. I hope you are prepared for it."

"You could stay too." The younger man urged.

"I think it best I don't." The Headmaster could not fight off the uneasiness this plan gave him. As deserving as Severus was of recognition the fight against Grindelwald all those years ago had taught him all too well the burden of being viewed a hero in this world. The stresses of celebrity. It was why he had gone to such lengths to shield Harry Potter from his own fame for so long. Trying to at least give him a normal childhood. "I'll see you when it's all over."

"Thank you." Severus nodded calmly, watching as Dumbledore disappeared with a sharp crack, taking the trunk containing Pettigrew with him. With the rat's history they both felt it was better not the let him out until they were sure he wouldn't try to scamper off.

…

Severus paced the length of the room in silence, occasionally glancing towards the two unconscious forms bound on the floor nearby. They were still out cold and thanks to Dumbledore they would be for quite a while yet, but as this was Voldemort he was dealing with it was still reassuring to keep and eye on him just in case.

It would take a little while for the Headmaster to alert the Aurors to their location and for them to make their way there so he spent the time going over what he would tell them in his head.

A muffled thud from the next room shocked the Potions Master out of his thoughts and put the man immediately on guard, long cultivated instincts telling him that, that wasn't the Aurors.

Creeping towards the doorway, careful to position himself to one side of the frame where he was at least partially shielded from whatever assailant might be on the other side Severus kept his wand raised and ready. Peering around into the darkened room he was startled to find a shadowy form standing far closer to the door than he had expected and facing right towards him.

The figures hands were lowered, a wand held but not yet raised and acting almost on instinct Severus took the opportunity to strike first before the other person could gain any advantage. With a vicious but not lethal blast he threw them back across the room.

The intruder hit the opposite wall and dropped, shifting as they fell, becoming an even darker shadow on the ground. A low growl was the only warning the Potions Master received before a large and very angry looking black dog was running straight towards him.

A sharp dodge to the left and well-placed rug were all that saved him from those vicious looking jaws. Severus watched on in terror as the creature missed him by a hairs breadth then slid on the fabric and struggled for a moment to right itself from the unexpected obstacle.

That moment was all Snape needed to let off another hex, once again sending the creature into the wall.

With an angry growl giving way to an even angrier shout the attacker returned to human form, wand in its hand almost instantly and this time raised high.

Through a broken shutter the rising sun outside the window gave Severus the first real look at his opponent and a shock of emotions ran through him at the realisation that he was fighting none other than Sirius Black.

Not too long-ago Snape's immediate response to this situation might have been to kill. Unforgivable curse or not he suspects the Ministry would let it slide, even if he hadn't just captured the greatest dark wizard in history, Black was still wanted for murder and it could easy be excused as self-defence. Unfortunately, the surly Professor was one of a select group who were now aware of the fugitive's innocence (And that had been a difficult truth to accept believe me) so as tempting as it might be, killing curses were out of the question.

Severus dived out of the way as Black lunged forward throwing a nasty hex that missed him by a hair's breadth.

With great restraint he forced himself to respond with nothing more than a stun, letting off as many as he could in quick succession, preying at least one of them hit home.

The animagus dodged and continued to fire back as across the room Severus rushed to take cover and continued his assault, both of them applying all of their skill as duellers even as the Potions Master did his best to keep his shots nonlethal.

Oddly enough Black appeared to be doing the same, at least for now.

An uncoordinated shot thrown over the top of the sofa he was now crouched behind was followed unexpectedly by a crash, thud and then a pained groan before the room went silent. Daring to peek out the Professor was shocked to find Black passed out on the ground, a broken bookcase laying across him. Apparently by some merciful fortune that last hit had missed its target but brought the bookcase down right on top of the fugitive's head.

…..

Thirty hours earlier.

Sirius darted from one shadow to the next, padded feet almost silent on the cobbled stone, nose low to the ground. The scent was faint but if he focused he could still follow it.

The plan to capture Peter at the school had failed. The rat had fled and in the end so had Sirius, barely escaping the dementors.

For a while his own survival and keeping clear of the Aurors had been his primary focus, keeping him from returning to the chase. His only comfort had been knowing that at least Peter was no longer near Harry.

It had been chance that brought him to this moment, just days ago he had been searching for food when without expectation he had caught a whiff of that all too familiar scent. It wasn't much, the trail a little old but for someone as determined as Sirius it was more than enough to go on, the hunt began again and now not even his hunger could distract him.

He had followed the trail to a village just south of Edinburgh, found the rat creeping along a street in his full human form for once, as though the traitor had a right to go walking around in daylight, pretending to be anything more than the spineless murderer he was.

Sirius was just preparing to pounce on his prey when someone else beat him to it. Another Death Eater by the look of it. The other man looked crazed, hissing something about the Dark Lord before grabbing hold of Peter and apparating them away.

There were two possible explanations as Sirius could see it;

One, the Death Eater who had taken Peter knew that the rat had been the one to inadvertently send Voldemort to his doom and was planning to get revenge. (A nice thought for Sirius considering it was that very fear that kept Peter hidden as a rat all these years and it would be no less than he deserved)

Two, the Death Eater was an ally of Peters and they were planning something.

Given the violent manner the other man had grabbed Peter it was probably the first one, but Sirius couldn't take that chance. Besides, he had more right to hate Pettigrew than any Death Eater did, if anyone was going to end that rat it was him, he just had to find out where they had gone.

Following an apparition was difficult and a time-consuming spell to pull off, but it was possible.

Thirty hours later he was appearing in the grounds of an old house.

Five minuets later he was sneaking through a window into a darkened room.

Five more minutes, one duel and a nasty bump on the head later he was unconscious.

…

Severus had watched a cartoon once. Several actually, when he was a child and his father had taken him to stay with his muggle grandparents. Most of them had been frivolous silly things that he barely remembered, funny to the child he was but forgettable to the man he became.

Here in this moment one of those cartoons inexplicably came to mind; a sketch of a character struggling to make a decision, their inner conflict displayed to the viewer in the form of an angel and a demon sat upon each shoulder, both trying to sway the character one way or the other.

Severus didn't have an angel or a demon speaking to him, but if he did he suspected it would go something like this;

Demon: Leave him. The Aurors are coming and they will take him back to Azkaban where he belongs.

Angel: Except he doesn't does he? He was innocent.

Demon: He was hardly innocent. You remember school. He was the bane of your life.

Angel: True but does that really deserve Azkaban? Isn't twelve years more than enough punishment for a man whose only real crime was being an arse?

Demon: He tried to kill you.

Angel: He was young and stupid. It's very likely he didn't actually think that through and wasn't actually trying to kill you

Demon: Sure he was. He got away with it too.

Angel: Twelve years. I think Karma more than caught up with him. He's suffered. Does he really deserve to suffer more?

Demon: Yes he does. You did.

Angel: Ok, let's be honest here, you weren't exactly a saint yourself.

Demon: Shut up. Whose side are you on anyway?

Angel: You shut up. I'm his good conscience. Don't you want to be a better man? Isn't that why you've been putting up with those bratty kids all these years?

Demon: Twelve years in that testosterone filled nightmare. In a way Black got off lightly. Azkaban is practically a vacation retreat in comparison.

Angel: The Aurors are coming. You know he doesn't deserve to go back. Do you really want to live with another bad choice on your conscience? Another thing to feel guilty about?

Demon: I think you'll be able to sleep easy. I really do.

Angel: You know you won't.

Demon: Just count sheep. You'll be fine.

Angel: You just saved Pettigrew. After what he did. If he deserves a second chance then Black surely does.

Demon: Does not.

Angel: Does too.

Demon: Does not.

Angel: Does too.

Demon: Does not.

Angel: Does too.

Severus groaned as he pinched the bridge of his nose and wondered when his imagination had gotten so ridiculous, he suspected it had something to do with the company he was keeping these days.

Before he could think about it any further he hefted Black up off the ground and apparated them to Tom's safe house trying hard not to think about the lifetime of rewards and recognition he was giving up by leaving.

Redemption sucked sometimes.

Sorry if this one came across rushed, I wasn't sure if I should spit this chapter in two or not but decided to leave it. I also skipped the fight scene because I'm not very good at writing them. Hope you don't mind.

93. Settling in

The first thing Sirius noticed when he woke was that his head hurt. A lot.

The second thing he noticed was that he couldn't move. Panicked he began to struggle, slowly becoming aware that he was sat upright in a chair, his arms bound holding him still.

It was dark, he couldn't see….he couldn't…

"For Merlin's sake Black, open your bloody eyes"

What?

Oh.

Sirius blinked at the sudden light, dots floating briefly in front of him as his pupils adjusted to the change. Snape was stood a few feet away, looking equal parts irritated and concerned. "I think you may be concussed" The other man told him with a frown "Either that or you're just stupider than I remember"

Sirius tried to glare back but the headache he was experiencing made it look more like a grimace.

"Here, drink this" Snape held a goblet to his lips "It's for your head"

Sirius turned his head away roughly "It's poison you mean!"

"No, you dolt. It's a healing potion. Why would I poison you? You were just unconscious, if I wanted you dead you would be dead"

Well he couldn't deny that logic, but he still wasn't drinking that potion.

"I'm not taking anything from a damned Death Eater"

Here Severus quirked an eyebrow, moving the goblet away, still full.

"Death Eater?"

"Yes" Sirius glared "I followed Peter to that house with that other Death Eater and there you were with them, ready to attack me and bring me here. Wherever here is. I don't know your plan, murderer but I promise I will not make it easy for you so you can take your potion and shove it"

Snape rolled his eyes at him again and Sirius continued to glare daggers until the other man stepped to one side and gestured around the room. "Look familiar Black? It should, considering how often you were sent here for misbehaviour during your school years"

For the second time since waking Sirius blinked to clear his vision, willing his mind to make sense of what he was seeing. "This is Dumbledore's office" He looked about in confused wonder.

Severus gave a slow clap.

"But I….it's a trick"

"It's not a trick you twit. I brought you here."

"Why?"

Snape pinched the bridge of his nose in agitation "I have aske myself that several times over the last hour believe me"

Sirius glared some more still highly confused about what was going on.

"You followed Pettigrew to that house you said?"

Sirius nodded. "The other one apparated them there. I traced it"

"What you don't seem to realise is that Voldemort himself was also there" Snape told him

"Voldemort is dead" Sirius argued.

"Unfortunately not. He is alive but weakened. Pettigrew was acting as part of a small group fighting against him. As was I. I can't tell you anymore about that at the present time. I'm sure the Headmaster will fill you in, but to cut a long story short Voldemort had captured Pettigrew; Dumbledore and I went to retrieve him, we fought the Dark Lord and his follower incapacitating them and both are now in the hands of the Aurors and on their way to Azkaban and you would be too if I hadn't got you out of there"

That last point was spoken with a resigned sigh.

Rather than reassure him, that brief explanation had left Sirius with so many questions. He settled on the one that seemed most relevant at the immediate time "Where is Dumbledore?" They were in his office after all.

"He's with Pettigrew. At a location outside the school."

"Look, whatever Peter has told you, you need to understand he was a Death Eater. I know he was! He's the one who betrayed James and Lily. He's a traitor!"

Snape held up a hand to silence him and Sirius begrudgingly allowed it "We know all that."

"Then why…?"

"His assistance against Voldemort is a recent development. Dumbledore will explain. He should be back soon."

Any attempt to coerce him in to explaining further were shot down as Snape insisted that "Dumbledore will explain it better"

Finally giving up Sirius suddenly noticed that something was different and frowned down at himself, the tattered rags he had been wearing since his escape were gone. "What am I wearing?"

"Your clothes were ruined and you smelled. I gave you a set of clean ones."

Sirius's nose wrinkled in horror "I'm wearing your clothes?" If his hands weren't tied he probably would have started pulling at the fabric to get it off.

Severus rolled his eyes. "Oh grow up. I'm the only one here who's the same size as you, unless you wanted to be dressed in a uniform, or perhaps you would have preferred one of Dumbledore's multicoloured monstrosities?"

"As a matter of fact…." Sirius began, then stoped for a moment and tried to picture himself in bright purple robes with gold stars, on second though plain black might not be so bad.

"Just tell me they're clean" he pleaded.

Severus quirked an eyebrow in annoyance, "Actually I spent an hour doing star-jumps in them then used them to scrub the bathroom. Enjoy."

He left the room.

Sirius was about 95% sure the other man was being sarcastic but once he was gone he leaned his head down and quickly sniffed the shoulder of the fabric to see if he could detect anything. It smelled like fresh washing powder.

…..

Once Dumbledore had returned to explain the full situation to Sirius and extracted a promise that he would not attempt to harm Pettigrew (for now) the man was finally untied from the chair and allowed to move about.

Obviously, he was not permitted to roam the school but a room just off of the headmaster's offices were arranged for him to sleep in until they had worked out the details of what they were going to do.

When Sirius saw the shower in the en-suite just off of his room he almost cried with relief. He hadn't had a proper wash in so long. Thanks to the Dementors hot showers were not available at Azkaban and most people there didn't have enough motivation left in them to care if they were clean. Whilst on the run he had occasionally jumped in a river in his dog form to wash off but that was about it.

"You know you've been in there an hour?"

Sirius ruffled the towel over his head to catch the last few drops then draped it over his shoulders thankful that he had put the dressing gown on before leaving the bathroom, otherwise he may have traumatised both of them for life.

"You know this is my room right?"

Snape rolled his eyes and dumped a bundle of clothes onto the bed. "Here, I brought you these"

"Your stuff again?"

"No. I sent a house elf into town to pick up some basics. Cloak, trousers, shirts, underwear and shoes. I'm sure you can charm them to fit if they don't. If you need anything else ask Dumbledore"

"Oh…thanks I guess"

"If you want food brought up just call for Dobby, he's a house elf now living in the kitchens that escaped from the Malfoy family last year. Don't ask me how. I left a pile of books from the library on the table over there, figured you might get bored and start trying to wander about if you didn't have anything to occupy you and I couldn't find anything shiny you could play with"

The weak attempt of a barb at the end fell flat.

"Why are you doing this?"

"What?"

"Being nice. We hate each other. Always have. This…." He gestured at the clothes for emphasis "…doesn't make sense"

Snape stared at him for a moment, face set into the same sneer Sirius always remembered, there was nothing to suggest his opinion of him had changed. So why was he being helpful?

"I'm trying to start a new chapter in life that doesn't revolve entirely around hating everybody" The other man admitted finally.

"Oh. How's that going so far?"

Snape actually seemed to consider his answer for a moment. "It's…had its moments. I've found that some people are not entirely deplorable"

"Even me?" Sirius smirked.

"No, you're still a git" Snape told him plainly "but you've been through enough that I'm willing to let that slide"

Sirius didn't know what to say to that so he just watched the other man leave in silence.

…..

"It's not fair" Severus muttered, glaring at the newspaper.

"Sorry Professor" George told him sincerely not quite brave enough to reach out and pat him on the back.

It was on the front page of every paper.

VOLDEMORT; ALIVE BUT CAPTURED!

HERO AURORS DEFEAT DARK LORD!

"Couldn't you have gone back?" Luna queried gently "After you had brought Mr Black away?"

"No" The Professor told her "I didn't know how soon the Aurors would take to arrive after I left, If I had returned after they got there all they would have seen is a former Death Eater coming to save his Master. I wouldn't have had time to explain a thing before they attacked. With the Dark Lord right there they would have been on high alert and all it would have taken is one hot head Auror lashing out in 'self-defence' and I'd be toast."

"Well we know the truth Professor" Fred assured him "And we think you did awesome"

"Yeah" George agreed.

"It really was good of you to save Mr Black too" Luna told him with a smile.

Snape groaned "Why does doing the right thing feel so lousy?"

Tom snorted in amusement "I know right? Being bad was always far more satisfying"

They both ignored Lunas look of disapproval.

…

"I think we should do something for the Professor" Luna told them the next day.

The whole school was still reeling from the news about Voldemort and their group had hidden themselves in their secret potions room for a break.

"Like what?" George asked fiddling with a new device him and Fred were working on, it had fins and pulleys and bulbs and an odd mirrored bit that folded down. Tom and Luna were both too nervous to ask what it was supposed to do and neither dared to hazard a guess.

"I don't know" The girl admitted "Something nice to cheer him up"

"Let's buy him a bottle of real high quality firewhiskey" Fred suggested. "He looks like a guy who would appreciate a good tipple"

"Isn't alcohol a little impersonal?" Luna asked. "Plus, none of us are old enough to buy any" She pointed out.

Fred just laughed "That's never stopped us before"

"Yeah" George agreed "Where there's a Weasley there's a way"

Tom chuckled at that.

"It's still not quite what I had in mind" Luna insisted.

"Well I don't think he could carry off a cork necklace as well as I do Peaches" Tom told her, well aware that her gifts were sometimes a little quirky. "Maybe a book? Or a new cauldron?" He suggested.

Fred looked sideways at George, George looked sideways at Fred.

They both watched as the two friends continued to chat.

"You heard that, right?"

"I did indeed."

Tom and Luna remained oblivious as the twins filed away this new information for future use.

"It doesn't necessarily have to be a gift" The young woman told them. "Maybe we could throw a party, or cook him dinner?"

"Can anyone here cook?" Tom asked.

"I can"

Fred looked sidelong at his brother "Liar"

"I can" George insisted. "Cooking is just like potion brewing. Ingredients, recipe, easy"

"Is not. Brewing doesn't have to taste good. Cooking does. I've tasted your cooking. I have flashbacks about your cooking. I barely survived."

"Fred you once burnt a salad"

"I'm not the one claiming I can cook"

"How does one burn a salad?" Snape asked, stepping into the room and ignoring the way his little group looked like they were up to something, if there was one thing Snape knew it was that his little group were always up to something, his go to strategy was not to get involved.

So far, he had, had limited success.

"Yeah Fred, how do you burn a salad?"

"Easy. You set it on fire."

Snape actually stopped walking and turned to look at the young man then shook his head in bemusement. "Ask a silly question…"

…

A day later after several arguments about cooking, gift selection and the illegal acquisition of alcohol the four friends eventually settled on an idea they all felt was suitable.

Severus stared at the odd arrangement on his desk, not entirely sure what to think.

The twins were stood either side of him with matching grins and Tom and Luna stood to the other side of the desk.

"We're calling it a gift cauldron"

It was certainly a cauldron. Nothing fancy, a new but fairly standard brewing cauldron with a green ribbon tied about the handle, it was…interesting.

Inside sat a selection of gifts, including the previously mentioned firewhiskey that Fred and George refused to reveal the source of, an assortment of sweets from honeydukes, some new measuring scales, a range of fresh potions ingredients, two pairs of socks because you always need socks in a gift cauldron (that was the rule) and a few specially made Weasley gadgets just because.

The four friends watched as the Professor removed each item one by one, inspecting them in turn with a bemused smile. Eventually he reached the end where a small card was tucked at the bottom that read;

Thanks for defeating Voldemort.

For the first time since the newspapers had started arriving Severus didn't feel put out or cheated.

In fact, looking around at three smiling faces and one mildly amused former horcrux, he thought that just maybe the rest of the world not knowing what he had done might be ok, as long as these kids knew. These few who had actually taken the time to worm their way through his long built up defences and admittedly unpleasant personality to reveal a man who perhaps wasn't as hopelessly lost as he had thought he was.

He wasn't cut out for a life of fame anyway. He hated crowds.

94. Teachers pets

L - You shouldn't be listening in on other people's conversations.

G - How can you expect us to resist?

F - Yeah, three of the four Marauders are in there!

T - Yes. And one of them is a traitor whose betrayal led to the death of the fourth.

G -

F -

G - The point still stands.

L - What are those things anyway?

F - Extendable ears.

G - Best thing we ever made. Now hush, we're listening.

T - I can't believe you two are fanboying over a bunch of pranksters.

F - I can't believe Mr Mooney himself was our teacher for a whole year and we didn't even know.

G - Tell me about it. I would've been one of the most diligent students ever if I'd known one of my heroes was teaching me.

F - Me too.

G - I would have done all the homework.

F - On time.

G - Pluss extra credit.

F - Early to every lesson.

G - Present for every lesson.

F - Awake.

G - Paying attention.

F - Wearing the uniform.

G - Correctly.

F - Not talking.

G - Not planning trouble.

F - Not causing trouble.

L - How are you two still at this school?

G - I would have put a shiny apple on his desk every morning.

F - Does he even like apples?

G - Sure he does. All teachers like apples. It's a rule.

L - I heard he likes chocolate.

F - A chocolate apple then.

G - Do they have chocolate apples?

T - Muggles have chocolate oranges.

F - Who's ever heard of leaving an orange on a teacher's desk?

T - I'm just supporting the concept of chocolate fruit.

G - Not a bad idea really. Imagine it, all the nutritional benefits of real fruit, but chocolate flavoured.

F - Would make healthy eating far more appealing.

L - That's actually an interesting idea. Could be a good business venture.

T - Could do a range; grapes, pears, bananas.

G - Peaches.

L - Why are you two laughing?

F - No reason.

G - Peaches.

L - Oh Merlin!

T - Hey, that's my nickname for her and you are not allowed to use it.

F - Why not?

T - Because I'm the former Dark Lord and I said so.

F - We're Gryffindors mate, we don't fold to intimidation tactics.

L - Because I'm the girl who turned Tom Riddle into the former Dark Lord instead of the current Dark Lord….and I said so.

G - Hu, well I don't know about you brother but I'm willing to fold to this intimidation tactic.

F - I surrender.

T - Put your hands down Weasley she doesn't even have her wand out.

G - We're getting side-tracked, what were we talking about?

T - You were discussing your strategy for becoming Hogwarts most dedicated teacher's pets.

F - That's right. I would have assisted him in every assistant-like way available.

G - At the very least we could have shook his hand and said thanks for the map.

F - And the inspiration.

G - At the very, very least we could have not caused so much trouble for him.

L - I'm sure you weren't too much trouble.

F - We can be a bit of a handful.

T - Gasp, surely not? Not you two. I don't believe it.

G - I just hope we never upset him.

L - Guys, you discovered his Lycanthropy and not only accepted him and kept his secret, you assisted in improving his wolfsbane so it was less unpleasant to drink thereby making the whole ordeal slightly easier for him. Whether you were model students or not, I think he was grateful for you.

F -

G -

F - That wasn't because he was a Marauder though. That was just because he's a great person.

G - Yeah, we like the guy. We just wanted to help.

T - Which makes it even better. You weren't doing it for some over idolised figure from a piece of enchanted parchment. You were doing it for him.

F - What do you mean over idolised?

G - We idolise them a perfectly acceptable amount!

T - I found the poetry.

L - Poetry?

G - Poetry?

T - An ode to the Marauders. Magnanimous Mischief Magicians.

F - I deny everything.

G - I also deny everything, but mine holds more weight because this is honestly the first I've heard of this.

L - Fred that's so sweet. I didn't know you were a poet.

T - It was pretty good too.

F - I continue to deny everything.

G - Nothing to be ashamed of brother.

F - Deny. Deny. Deny.

…..

Severus stared at the parchment in his hand, watching the conversation play out with mild amusement and slight horror at learning that two of his favourite students were fans of the Marauders. He wouldn't usually spy on the kids but since they were spying on him he felt it was only fair so with a little enchantment he had restarted the spell that transfers the groups speech into text and was watching them argue outside the door from his diary page.

Across the room Lupin and Black were arguing with Dumbledore about what should be done with Pettigrew.

Pettigrew himself was cowering to one side in terror in the face of his two former friends.

Severus would prefer not to be there but since Black had sent the owl to Lupin telling the wolf what was going on the Headmaster had asked him to be there to help keep order.

"What the hell are you reading Snape?" Black snapped suddenly, turning to glare at him.

Severus looked up with a quirked eyebrow and glared right back. "I'm marking homework" he replied curtly.

"Homework?"

"You've been rambling for a while now, I decided to spend my time a little more productively."

Black grit his teeth and turned back to Dumbledore, apparently deciding the other man was not worth speaking to anymore. Severus went back to watching his students.

…..

T - What are they saying now?

F - I don't know. Something about homework.

A few notes;

The twins helping with the wolfsbane potion is an event that occurred in the side story 'Secret Potions Club' just in case anyone who hasn't read that was wondering about it.

Terry's chocolate oranges were invented in 1932 whilst Tom was a child so he would know about them.

I am now craving chocolate oranges.

Wouldn't magic chocolate fruit and vegetables be amazing? I think I would finally manage to eat my five a day.

95. An ode to the Marauders

An ode to the Marauders

Four friends who walked these halls before

And left your map herein

Whose influence I still can feel

Reflected in my grin

I solemnly swear – and always shall –

To heed your sacred oath

I am up to no good – and always will be -

Me and my brother, both

For what is life without a laugh?

Without a bit of fun?

Like the sky so vast above

Devoid of moon or sun

Messrs who once, paved the path

For hijinks, jokes, and jest

Be sure the Mischief Managed here

Was never laid to rest

Pioneers of wreaking havoc

Trouble makers true

Heroes of this sacred creed

Marauders through and through

...

Magnanimous Mischief Magicians

Magnanimous Mischief Magicians

Trickiest Tricksters in Town

Wonderous Whizzes of Wizards

Cleverest Cunningest Clowns

Best in the Bamboozle Business

Duping and Dodging them Dotes

Fastidious and Fabled and Fabulous

Gaining the Glory to Gloat

Absolute Artists of Antics

Plotters and Planners of Pranks

Jolliest Jesters and Jokers

Recruiting old Rascals to Ranks

Handling Hijinks with Humour

Leading the Lackeys in Laughs

Spreading the Splendour and Smiles

Champion Chiefs of the Craft

I had a few requests for a sample of Fred's Poetry so I decided to give it a go. I had planned just one but somehow ended up with two. 😊

96. Justice

The tension in the air was heavy, everyone gathered in the room could feel it. Despite the Headmasters best intentions what had started as a peaceful discussion had become almost a trial, each of them arguing their case for and against the newly rescued Pettigrew.

Sirius clenched his fists in anger, looking ready to punch something. If the man still had a wand he would probably be flinging hexes about by now.

"He killed James and Lily!" The escaped convict shouted "He tried to kill Harry! And all those muggles. What about them? Don't they deserve justice? If nothing else he deserves prison. I spent twelve years in that place for his crimes! Isn't it about time he did?"

"Voldemort killed the Potters" Tom pointed out grateful that they had been invited to join this discussion after they had been caught spying instead of being sent away. Clearly Peter needed a few people on his side. "So technically I could be held more responsible than him"

"You aren't responsible for Voldemort's actions" Fred insisted.

"It was Peters betrayal that led to James and Lily's deaths." Remus growled, his own anger almost equal to Sirius's. "He should confess to that crime"

"It would certainly clear Black's name." Severus pointed out "Give him his freedom back."

Sirius's eyes widened in surprise before he shot a weak glare at the other man, annoyed that his former school rival was siding with him. Why couldn't Snape just be a git so he could carry on hating him uninterrupted? Why did he have to complicate things? Why did he…..? …did Snape just stick his tongue out at him?

Severus turned his head away quickly, supressing a laugh at the baffled look on Black's face. He really needed to stop hanging around these kids, it was having a terrible effect on his personality.

Tom glared at Sirius, standing between the angry man and Peter almost like a guard. "He deserves a shot at redemption. He has been helping us."

Luna nodded in agreement turning to Peter imploringly "He's sorry for what he did. Tell them Mr Pettigrew, aren't you sorry?"

All eyes turned to Peter with a mixture of hopeful and hateful looks. Peter looked up, meeting each one in turn. It took every ounce of his Gryffindor courage to face Sirius and Remus again. To look at them head on and face up to the reality of the crimes he had committed against his friends.

Oddly enough it took even more courage to look at the young woman standing beside his Master, eyes kind and full of a forgiveness he was sure he didn't deserve. He wondered if this girl knew he had once offered to kill her. He felt sick.

Five minuets passed in silence as Peter considered each person in front of him. Thinking through every decision he had made and the consequences he had and hadn't faced since then.

"I am sorry…" He admitted, turning quickly away from the girls smile of encouragement "…I'm so, so sorry. I know I did something terrible. I can't justify it. Not now. At the time I thought….I thought…" Peter closed his eyes in anguish. Wishing he could explain to them how he had fallen so far as to betray his friends like that.

There was a tense pause as Peter took a moment to collect himself, knowing what he had to do.

"I am sorry" He repeated. "That's why I agree with Sirius and Remus. I have to confess to my crimes and clear Sirius's name."

The room erupted into chaos.

…..

Hours later Sirius stared at the quiet dejected figure tied to the chair with a sense of detached numbness. It had been arranged for Peter to be taken to the ministry the following morning.

Desperately Sirius tried to see in Peter a man he hated.

The man who had betrayed his friends, and killed so many others.

Desperately he tried to see a Death Eater.

Instead despite his best effort he kept seeing flashes of a young man.

A boy with a nervous demeanour but a quick mind and brave heart. A boy who hadn't been quite as bright as his friends but had been smarter than most gave him credit for. A boy who had been funny and easy to talk to and who came up with great ideas for pranks even if he needed a little help pulling them off.

As much as he tried not to Sirius couldn't help seeing his friend.

And Peter had been his friend.

He had trusted him.

When Sirius had come up with the idea of making Peter the Secret Keeper, it had never for a moment occurred to him not to. He had truly believed in his friend.

Right up until he found himself staring into the burned-out wreck of that house and realising how wrong he had been.

This was his first-time seeing Peter since that night.

Sirius really tried to hate him.

It was annoying. Snape was here too. Snape who had saved Sirius from recapture, defended his innocence, offered him books to read, given him clean clothes and yet was still fairly easy to hate, or at least dislike; after years of practice it was practically second nature to Sirius.

Why was it so hard with Peter?

He supposed the problem was he had never had to hate Peter, not in person.

The night he had learned of his betrayal Sirius had been fuelled by nothing but grief. Then Peter pulled his little exploding stunt and Sirius was sure he was dead. Justice was done. He just let his former friend be forgotten, too tired to hate his memory. Then he was in Azkaban, he felt nothing but sadness. All happiness gone. Only the truth of his innocence to keep him going. When he learned that Peter was alive and at Hogwarts he felt worry for his godson. Determination to find the rat and remove the threat. When he arrived at Hogwarts to find Peter already gone he felt frustration.

Here in this room, looking at the man who had betrayed his friends. Who had led to his false imprisonment. Twelve years older than when he had last seen him but looking ten times worse, it was the first time that Sirius Black actually took the time to hate Peter Pettigrew and as much as he tried he just couldn't seem to find it in him.

"I can't forgive you." He muttered darkly.

Peter flinched but met his eyes anyway. "I know."

"I hate what you did"

"So do I"

"I'm so angry"

"You're right to be"

Sirius felt tears welling up in his eyes but fought them back. He wouldn't cry here. Not for him.

Why couldn't Peter have been some crazed Death Eater spewing nonsense about blood purity and the Dark Lord and whatever else he might once have believed in? Why couldn't he be easy to hate?

Why did he have to be this pitiful little man, accepting his former friend's anger without question or complaint, admitting his guilt without hesitation. Sirius didn't want Peter to redeem himself by doing the right thing. He didn't want to forgive him. He just wanted to hate him.

Why couldn't he hate him!?

"Find something to focus on." He found himself saying, not really sure why. "When you're inside. Find a thought they can't take away. Not a happy one. Just…a simple truth you can hold on to. Something to ground you."

Peter stared up at him in curious wonder and once again Sirius was reminded of the boy he had known so long ago. With enough imagination he could imagine he was sat in the Gryffindor common room going over the plans for a new prank or even just helping his young friend with a piece of schoolwork he was struggling with, those same eyes looking up at him in awe.

Tearing his gaze away Sirius turned to leave, throat constricting with emotion.

"It might help" He whispered.

Sorry for anyone rooting for Peter but I think he made the right choice.

What on earth happened to this story? It started so silly. How did I get here? I did not expect this when I started writing. :) Thank you to anyone still reading.

97. Progress

F - Did you hear the news? Sirius is adopting Harry.

T – Really? Why?

G – Because he's his godfather.

F – And by all accounts the family Harry had been living with up until now aren't very nice. He always did hate going home for summer.

G – Stayed at our house a few times just to avoid it.

T – That makes sense then. Now that Black's name has been cleared there is no reason he shouldn't take custody. Especially since Voldemort has been locked away for good.

G – Are we sure it is for good?

T – Very sure. I can feel how weak he is. He's not getting out of there any time soon.

F – That's a relief.

L – Will you three please stop passing notes in class! You are supposed to be paying attention.

T – You're one to talk Miss Lovegood, the three of us are in History of Magic and are probably the only students in this room still awake. You on the other hand I believe are in Transfiguration at the moment and really should be paying attention.

G – Tut, tut Luna.

F – Oh dear. We've turned her into a rebel.

L – I'm putting my page away and ignoring you all for the rest of the day.

T – We're still meeting for potions club later though, right?

….

G – Wow, she really is ignoring us.

T – She's good at that. When I was still a diary she used to punish me by putting me in a drawer and ignoring me for days, sometimes weeks.

F – Punish you for what?

T – Little things really. Making snarky comments, expressing outdated and bigoted views on things before I knew any better, asking her to commit murder and / or torture on my behalf.

G – Sometimes I really do wonder how that girl managed to not give up on you.

T – So do I.

….

S – I don't suppose any of you have space available to house a fully-grown Hippogriff, do you?

G – Um…what?

F – Blimey Professor. That's quite a question to just throw out without warning.

S – It's Blacks fault. It seems he escaped the school on the Hippogriff Hagrid was keeping here last year. Now that he is no longer on the run and is planning to settle in London, he has nowhere to house the creature.

T – Can't it go back to Hagrid?

S – Sadly not. Lucius Malfoy was trying to have the animal put down last year due to the incident with Draco, if it comes back to the school and anyone finds out then it may end up back on the block. We are trying to find an alternative home.

L – I'll ask Rolf. The Scamander family runs a small sanctuary for magical animals that his parents started a few years ago. They might have room for a Hippogriff.

S – That would be perfect. Thank you.

T – Ohhh, Rolf to the rescue, how sweet.

L – I thought you were friends now?

T – We are.

L – Then why are you being snarky?

T – I'm not. It really is sweet that you are able to go to your boyfriend for help with things like housing the Hippogriff you once helped an escaped convict evade capture with.

L – An innocent escaped convict.

T – Who once kidnapped you.

L – Accidentally.

T – It was not accidentally. It was a very intentional kidnapping.

L – He was very kind to me during that incident though.

T – Yes, he kindly kidnapped you a friend to keep you company.

L – Oh hush.

S – Go back to the part where you helped Black escape? When did this happen? I thought you were in the hospital wing when he was fleeing the school?

L – I was. But…I also wasn't.

S – What?

T – There may have been an incident with a time turner.

S – I'm going to need to hear this story.

F – Us too.

G – Yeah we want to hear it.

T – You two were there. You helped her.

F – True but stories are always fun.

L – I'm not writing it out on here. Meet me in the potions classroom after last period and I will tell you all in person.

S – Excellent plan. That way I can reprimand you all for rule breaking and recklessness in person.

G – I'll bring the popcorn.

…

L – Rolf says they have space to take Buckbeak.

S – Wonderful, I will let Black know. Thank you Luna.

L – You're welcome.

…

S – Luna, Professor Lupin was with Mr Black when I went to tell him about Buckbeak and he has asked me, to ask you, to ask Mr Scamander, to ask his parents if there are any jobs available at their sanctuary and if they are willing to hire a werewolf. It would seem his career prospects have been somewhat limited since leaving the school.

L – Oh, poor Professor Lupin. I'll ask.

….

L – Rolf's mother has said there are positions available and they are happy to hire a werewolf, please ask Professor Lupin to Owl her directly. I will let you know the contact details.

S – Excellent, thank you.

L – That's alright.

S – I'm not sure when I became a messenger for the bloody Marauders though.

T – If it's any consolation you're doing a wonderful job of it.

S – Oddly enough Tom, that doesn't help.

Hi everyone. Happy new year. Sorry for the really long wait this time. I can blame nothing but writers block. I'm hoping to bring this story to a conclusion soon so fingers crossed it will wrap up in a way that you can all enjoy. I think I still have a few more chapters in me though. Wishing you all a happy new year again.

98. Forgiveness and revenge

Tom glared at the door in front of him and shifted his feet, fingers flexing around the container of the potted plant in his hands. "Why do I have to do this?" He asked Luna.

Luna sighed, it had been a struggle getting her friend this far and he had been asking the same question for days.

"Because it's the right thing to do Tom."

"But it's not like it will fix anything."

"You need to at least apologise."

"And why do I need the geranium?"

"It's always nice to include a gift when telling someone you're sorry"

It still seemed ridiculous to the horcrux, but by the look on Lunas face he had already stalled as long as she was willing to tolerate.

"Fine!"

Tom grit his teeth together and pushed through the door and into the next room, still frustrated he had to do this. The bathroom was even more bleak and run down than he remembered it. Probably since it was no longer used by anyone thanks to the resident ghost.

The ghost in question was hovering in and out of the stalls when they walked in and immediately swooped over to greet them. "Luna, how lovely to see you again. Who is this boy? Is he your friend? You've never brought a friend before. Why did you bring him? You know boys are not allowed in here. It is a girls bathroom you know. No boys!"

"Hello Myrtle" Luna greeted brightly. "This is Tom. I brought him to meet you. He has something very important to say. Don't you Tom?"

A sharp elbow to his ribs prompted Tom into action "Hi, Myrtle was it? Um…you probably don't remember me but…" The young man paused for a moment to think how best to word this "It's a long story really but I was actually at school with you. I'm…well…its complicated but I was stored inside a diary for a while and recently got out….that's why I'm still young."

He looked towards the ghost for confirmation that she was following but the transparent girl was just staring at him like he had gone mad. She looked towards Luna in question and the young woman assured her it was true so the ghost swooped forward to look at him more closely.

Tom stood still and refused to flinch as she pressed her spectral face close to his"

"Alright, fine, if you say so. It's a strange story but I'll accept it. So you were at school when I was alive? Well I don't remember you. We weren't friends. I didn't even have any friends then. So why are you here?"

Tom grit his teeth and steeped back slightly unsure how the ghost was going to react to this news.

"Well the thing is, the day you died, here in this bathroom, I um…I was the one who was here…with you."

That got a reaction from the dead girl who swooped in even closer than before, her nose almost sinking into his as she stared into his eyes"

"You were the one who made the hissy noises?"

"Yes. I was speaking parseltounge. To open the Chamber of Secrets."

"The what?"

"The Chamber of Secrets. It's a secret Chamber under the school. There is a doorway over there.." He gestured towards the sinks "…that I was opening. I didn't realise you were in here until you came out of the stall."

"So you killed me?" She asked sharply, tilting her head to the side quizzically and pressing even closer to him.

"No…um…yes….um…technically the basilisk killed you."

"The what?"

"Giant snake. Lives in the Chamber" He explained.

"And it killed me? Because you let it out?"

"Yes"

"So, it was an accident?"

"Um…." Tom shifted back a bit, surprised to realise he felt genuinely guilty "No. I told it to kill you. You…um….if you had seen me you would have been a witness so I….uh….I had to get rid of you before you saw me. Also you were muggle born and I was….a little prejudiced against that at the time."

"So you killed me?" She asked again.

"Yes" He conceded finally "Sorry, about that."

Tom was a little surprised that she wasn't reacting more violently considering he had just confessed to her murder. Instead she was just leaning closer and closer as if trying to see into his mind. Technically as a ghost she could probably literally see into his mind; just phase through his head and take a look at his brains. That probably wouldn't give her the answers she was looking for though.

She's still staring, he realised, snapping out of his random musing. Tom figured he should probably say something.

"Actually, it was killing you that allowed me to make the horcrux that I have been living in all these years" He admitted reluctantly "Which is why I am able to be here now." It was an odd thought really. "In a way I guess I sort of owe you my life" And in return I took yours, he added on silently to himself. Wow this guilt thing is horrible.

He held out the potted plant with a grimacing smile and Myrtle glanced down at in in confusion before retuning her glare to him.

"What is that?" She asked in suspicion.

"It's a geranium." Luna explained. "It's a gift for you. From Tom. To show you how sorry he is"

The ghosts face twisted again, the glare easing as she considered the plant.

"For me?" She asked.

"Yes" Tom nodded holding it up for her to see.

Myrtle blinked behind her ghostly spectacles looking somewhat baffled, then began swooping around the plant to look at it from all angles. Tom cringed as she flew straight through his arms.

The smile that lit up the girl's face made Tom feel even more nervous than her glare had, as she brought her face near to his again. "A boy has never given me flowers before" She squealed delightedly.

"I killed you" He reminded her almost desperately.

"That's ok" She smiled, eyes wide. "I don't mind anymore."

"Oh…" Well that was a surprise "…good?"

"My parents were very upset" She admitted, looking sad for a moment. "I tried to talk to them at the funeral but it frightened the muggle guests and the ministry had to wipe everyone's memories of it. They're dead too now. They aren't here though. They went somewhere else. Somewhere….other"

Luna smiled sadly. "My mother went there too"

Both girls nodded as though this conversation made total sense and Tom just relaxed a little, glad her attention was away from him again. His own stupid curiosity put a stop to that however "If I may ask Myrtle, why didn't you go to the…other place?"

He wasn't sure what reaction he was expecting from the question, but the manic grin that took over the ghost's face wasn't it.

"Olive Hornby" She squealed in delight.

"Who?"

"She was the reason! The reason I was in the bathroom that day. Horrid girl. She had been teasing me about my glasses and I had come here to cry in peace."

Luna looked sad for a moment and Tom knew she was thinking about her own experience with bullies. He also knew she would be taking hold of the ghost's hand right now if it was possible.

"I got my own back though" Myrtle shrieked out a laugh "Oh yes I did. I made her regret teasing me."

"How?" Tom asked suddenly highly interested in this conversation. Regardless of Lunas views, Tom would always maintain that revenge was fun.

"I haunted her!" Myrtle laughed manically "Every moment. Every day. I made sure she knew that my death was her fault. And yours I suppose. But mostly hers! Even after she graduated, I stayed with her. For years! Years!" The shrieking laugh sounded borderline insane and Tom loved it "She learned her lesson. I made sure of that."

The ghost swooped about the room airily with a soft smile on her face as though reminiscing over a truly pleasant memory "Those years were a joy for me." She told them "Watching her. Following her everywhere. Making her miserable. I could have haunted her forever"

"Why didn't you?" Tom asked, ignoring the look of horror on Lunas face.

"She finally convinced the Ministry to enforce a stupid restraining order against me. I'm not allowed to leave the school anymore."

"What a terrible shame" Tom commiserated.

"I know. It was an awful day when they forcibly bound me to the place of my death and condemned me to an eternity of haunting this old bathroom….and occasionally other bathrooms" she added "and even more occasionally the lake which I sometimes get flushed into. You know, mermaids are not as nice as people expect them to be."

"Oh, are they not?" Luna asked, surprised enough by this statement that she forgot about the years of torment Myrtle had just confessed to inflicting on her former schoolmate. "What are they like then? I would be very interested in meeting one."

"Don't bother" Myrtle told her. "They are all moody and ugly and screechy with their pointy teeth and pointy claws and pointy ears and pointy tails and I'm sure they have other pointy things. I would recommend avoiding them all the time"

"That's such a shame"

Tom rolled his eyes.

"Luna you have never met a mermaid and never expressed a desire to meet one before now, why do you care what they are or aren't like?"

"Good point"

"Thank you"

"I'm still disappointed"

"We can go visit the thestrals later." He suggested with a smile "That will cheer you up."

"Good idea. Oh, Myrtle do you want to come and see the thestrals with us? Can ghosts see thestrals? You can only see them if you've seen death. Does being dead have the same effect? Technically you've seen your own death right? Or is it different?"

"I suppose we'll find out later if Myrtle joins us" Tom reasoned.

"Aren't the thestrals in the forest?" the ghost asked. "I don't think I can reach that far."

"You can get to the lake though, can't you? I'll bring them to the edge for you" Luna promised.

The ghost girl's excitement was very apparent as she swooped about even more than before, seeming barely able to restrain herself "Sounds perfect. Can we go now? Can we?"

Tom and Luna exchanged and glance to confirm that neither had any immediate plans and then both shrugged in acceptance "Sure"

"Brilliant. Let's go" Myrtle cheered "You will need to flush me."

At that the ghost flew into the nearest toilet bowl and sat peering out over the seat with an excited grin. "Just pull that chain would you?"

As Luna reached for the chain Tom realised he was still holding the potted geranium "Where do you want this?" he asked.

Myrtles eyes lit up again. "Oh just put it in the end stall on top of the toilet lid"

"You don't want it by the window?" Tom queried. "It would get more light there. Also you will need to water it once a day. You can still use the taps right?"

"I can, but I won't" Myrtle told them, her slightly mad grin returning as her eyes focused on the plant. "I'm just going to leave it alone and watch as it slowly dies"

With that she reached up and pulled the chain herself before diving back into the bowl and letting herself be flushed out into the lake.

"You know what?" Tom told his friend as he placed the plant where he had been instructed "It's odd but, I think I like her"

Luna, looking slightly dazed by the whole encounter just shook her head to clear it and then turned towards the door. "Come on Tom, lets go find the thestrals"

Chapter credit goes to potpotkettle who suggested the idea of Tom and Myrtle meeting. Sorry I left out the possession idea.

99. New world order

"As the new Headmaster of Hogwarts it is my pleasure to welcome you all to your new school year. Under my leadership we will be introducing a few changes to the current curriculum. For a start there will now be compulsory culture studies to encourage students from wizarding and muggle backgrounds to discuss the differences in their respective upbringings, in order to promote greater understanding between them.

Further to that, care of both magical and non-magical creatures and lessons on their diverse varieties will be available to students of all ages through a voluntary weekend course that each year will include a class expedition to an exciting location. This year will be a two-week dragon watching trip in Romania courtesy of Mr Charles Weasley.

At the request of Mr Filch and supported by popular vote from the teachers detentions are now abolished and we are instead returning the sub dungeons to their original use with escape proof shackles already being installed and a shipment of rats arriving tomorrow ready to be released down there. Duration of imprisonment will range from a few hours to a week depending on the severity of the offence with nothing but bread and water to be served to the prisoners.

Due to the continuing decline in exam results in History of Magic, Peeves the poltergeist has been appointed as a teaching assistant for Professor Binns and will be caterwauling anyone he sees falling asleep. He will also be providing his own theatrical interpretation of the topics being discussed using real weaponry stolen from the suits of armour throughout the castle so it is in your best interest to remain alert.

In addition to Quidditch several more sports will be available to students including: football, tennis, broomstick racing, and levitation high jump. Suggestions for any other sports you would like can be submitted to Madame Hooch for consideration.

Finally, I would like to welcome you all again and at the end of the year I encourage you to tell all of your parents what a fantastic year you have had and what an excellent job I'm doing. Don't worry yourselves at all about the mysterious disappearance of Professor Dumbledore, I'm sure he's absolutely fine. Probably on a beach somewhere drinking a Margarita and enjoying a well-earned if abrupt retirement. Thank you."

The small audience erupted into applause cheering and whooping with excitement.

"Brilliant mate" George cried out "Brilliant"

Fred and Rolf began shooting small fireworks from their wands "Long live the new Headmaster!"

"Long may he reign"

Luna frowned disbelief at her friends. "Really? Given the frequency you two get detention are you honestly supporting dungeon imprisonment as an alternative?"

"Of course" Fred grinned "We can be the first people in over a hundred years to successfully pull off an official Hogwarts dungeon escape."

"From the escape proof shackles?"

"If it was easy it wouldn't be called a challenge"

The twins shared a high five as Luna rolled her eyes.

"Tom, as much as I love some of those idea's I think your plans for Hogwarts may need a little more work before you actually become Headmaster"

"True" The newly regenerated 5th year student agreed. "I have about four years before I take over from Dumbly. There's plenty of time to plan"

"We can start brainstorming ideas now!" Rolf declared, grabbing a piece of parchment and a quill, unmindful of the unrealistic assertion that Tom would be headmaster in as little as four years.

"I think we should make potions optional" Neville suggested.

"Why stop at potions?" Fred asked. "Make them all optional."

"Motion denied" Tom told them both, banging his hand on the table. "However, you can be excused from a class for safely reasons. Such as repeated cauldron explosions"

Neville grinned in triumph.

"Allow snacks in the library" Luna insisted.

"Oh just sneak them in like everyone else does" Tom groaned. "I'm not arguing with Mrs Pince about her library rules. She scares me"

"I think we should move potions to somewhere more well ventilated than the dungeons" George suggested. "Maybe one of the towers"

Tom stared at the redhead in shock. "Just to be clear, your suggestion for Hogwarts is that we kick Professor Snape out of his well-guarded territory and move him somewhere else?"

Neville's jaw was almost on the ground.

George just nodded as all the others continued to stare.

"Would you like to be the one to tell him?"

The redhead shrugged. "Sure. I can do that."

"Go on then"

"What now?"

"Yeah."

"You're not headmaster yet."

"So? Just ask him what he thinks of the suggestion"

"Alright fine"

George stood up, moving towards the door, shoulders' squared. At the last second, he spun back around with a flourish, "You know what? Its late and I'm sure he's busy, no point bothering him over something that won't be an issue for a few years yet. But when you take over, I promise I will definitely tell him."

Fred snorted throwing a stray exploding snap card at his brother. "Coward"

"Order in the court!" Rolf shouted.

The group continued to brainstorm ideas for the rest of the afternoon before finally calling it a night.

"Hey" George grinned at Parvati Patil as he passed her in the common room, "Did you hear the headmaster is planning to move Potions out of the Dungeons? Going to stick it in one of the towers so there's better ventilation"

….

"Honestly Severus" Dumbledore reasoned calmly as the other man paced angrily across his office "I don't know where the students got the idea from. I've never suggested anything like it"

"Good! I should hope not!"

"Though now that I think about it, they have a point"

100. Hello again

29/11/1992 - Today I began tracking the movements of a probable skizer-gnatt infestation around the east tower. I've had some success with the turnip paste though results are sketchy. Tomorrow I will try adding onion.

Who are you and what in the name of Merlin's beard are you talking about?

….

"Do you have the paste?" Luna asked as Tom checked through their supply bag to ensure they had everything.

"Yes Peaches, I have the paste. All five jars of it that I spent three hours this afternoon mashing by hand because apparently 'using magic to mash it interferes with its intrinsic magical properties'

Luna smiled sweetly at the boy, not even acknowledging the sarcasm in his tone "Thank you Tom"

"If I don't actually see a skizer-gnatt tonight, with my own two eyes, I am going to be severely disappointed"

"If this goes to plan you will see a whole swarm"

"Oh joy"

…

Hello?

Hello. Who are you? Where is Ginny?

Ginny?

Yes Ginny.

Ginny Weasley?

Yes. Ginevra Molly Weasley. The owner of this diary.

This is Ginny's diary?

….

"Where are we meeting Ginny?"

"In the East corridor near the Ancient Runes classroom." Luna whispered, peering carefully around the column just in case any patrolling teachers or prefects were lurking nearby. "Fred and George are planning a prank over by the greenhouses tonight so we probably shouldn't be bothered by anyone. The teachers will be far too distracted."

"The twins are planning a prank and I'm here hunting potentially imaginary insects when I could be with them?"

"Do you want to see one or not?"

"Yes, I do"

"Then hush and follow me. Ginny should already be there"

"Lead the way"

….

Who am I talking to?

The diary.

How are you responding?

I'm enchanted to respond to my owner in order to offer advice.

I've never heard of that enchantment before.

….

They approached the agreed meeting place without too much trouble. Any other student probably would have been caught by Filch, but Luna had long ago won Mrs Norris's affections and the cat was good enough to not draw attention to them as the caretaker strolled past their hiding place.

Luna would no doubt find a way to sneak the feline a treat later. Probably get Thomas A. Caticus and that ugly orange cat from the Gryffindor house to deliver it for her.

"You know Tom…" Luna mused, looking up at the door to the classroom as they passed "I'm torn between doing Arithmancy or Ancient Runes at N.E.W.T level. What do you think?"

"Ancient Runes" He answered automatically.

"You really think so?"

"Well, you're already highly proficient in Arithmancy and you would only need to study it further if you were planning a career specific to Arithmancy once you graduate."

"Definitely not"

"Exactly. Anyway, you've been doing well at the O.W.L level Runes classes, haven't you? N.E.W.T level includes the study of texts that scholars have not yet translated. I think you would be able to offer a very unique interpretation on them. Also, with all the travels and expeditions you have been on you probably have a greater grasp of language variations and cultural stylization than many other students."

"Do you really think so?"

"I do. Subjects like Runes Translation always need people who can look at things from a fresh perspective. Who knows, you might unlock some lost piece of wisdom from an ancient wizarding civilisation"

"That would be interesting"

"That would be incredible Luna"

"So, you definitely think I should do Ancient Runes?"

"Absolutely"

"Thanks Tom. You always give the best advice"

…..

Who are you?

I'm Luna. Who are you?

My name is Tom and I'm getting very frustrated with you Luna. Give me back to Ginny.

No. I think I'll keep you for a while.

….

"Oh Luna, you were right. Skizer-gnatts are real and I was totally wrong. My hours of passive aggressively complaining about the smell of turnips and onions and the futile effort of searching for an 'imaginary creature' Invented by 'crackpots' were all in vain. I bow to your superior knowledge and accept that there are things in this world I do not yet know. Please teach me your ways Luna. I have so much more to learn"

Tom rolled his eyes at the giggling girl but couldn't stop the smile pulling at his lips as she teased him relentlessly.

"Ok Luna, I concede that there is in fact an infestation of strange insects in this castle which I have never seen before, and that those insects may or may not one day be officially classified as skizer-gnatts."

"Oh, they will. I am already writing a report on them with supporting evidence to be submitted to the Magizooligical society and will be insisting on it."

Tom snorted even as he felt a stab of pride for his friend, for all her quirks he knew how seriously she took this and was sure that any report she sent would indeed be concise and thorough, with all necessary evidence to remove all doubt on the existence of these new creatures.

"I suppose Rolf will be assisting with that?"

"He will. His grandfather has promised to give us some advice on the steps to take when getting a new species officially recognised."

"Will I get a mention in this report? As the one who helped you in your quest to officially prove the existence of skizer-gnatts?"

"Of course, I will include a footnote listing you as my faithful sceptic whose constant disbelief motivated me to prove you wrong so I could then rub it in your smug formerly Dark Lord face."

The young man laughed out loud at that.

"I really have been a bad influence on you haven't I"

"Absolutely terrible."

"You really shouldn't be friends with me." He mused "Just a few short years and I've reduced you to gloating. Who knows what terrible influence I might have in the long run? We should cut ties now to save you from further corruption"

Luna grinned at him, wide and happy. The both knew any influence Tom might have had on her was nothing compared to the influence she'd had on him.

"No, I think I'll keep you"

There it is ladies and gentlemen; I am afraid this is the final chapter of the story.

I didn't want the ending to be an end so decided instead to take a look back at the very beginning, and leave you with the promise of a happy future for all the characters. (Except the bad ones who are now in Azkaban)

I hope you all enjoyed reading this crazy tale. I have loved writing it and am so grateful for all the support you have provided with your kind reviews and helpful suggestions.

Thank you to everyone who stuck with me from the start and everyone who joined in along the way.

Thank you to anyone writing translations. You guys are awesome.

Thank you everyone for putting up with any spelling errors, plot holes, long waits for new chapters and all the general insanity this fic has involved.

Wishing you all a wonderful day and wonderful lives. xxx

101. Fan art and translations

The lovely potpotkettle who has been producing a Japanese translation of this story has just informed me that a Japanese artist has made a piece of fan art for it.

Artist username 'rousaro' on twitter. Here is the short link to the artwork:

tiny.

cc

(slash) luna-fan-art

Please take a look, it is adorable and I am very excited and grateful.

...

List of translations available (and the heroes who made them):

French – Dan534 - u/6717163/

Korean - choeunmee - ml?book_code=1263297

Czech - mcepl - s/13145948/

Russian – Quadratic function - "ficbook . net"

Japanese – potpotkettle - u/9948199/

...

Thank you very much to everyone who has taken the time to translate this story and everyone who has taken the time to read it.