(Prequel to Severus Snape: The Half-Blood Prince)
Before the era of wizarding wars, Tom Riddle was an orphaned boy with magical abilities who grew up surrounded by Muggles.
Riddle absolutely hated Muggles because they reminded him of his Muggle fat...
"I definitely am," Tom said with a genuine smile. Tom returned the tray then joined Sophie's side as they began walking up the stairs to their rooms.
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Tom and Sophie spent the next few days studying the book until it was Tom's birthday. They had reached the 'E' section but there was still so much to learn and discover. Sophie was more excited about Tom's birthday than Tom. She stayed up later than the other kids to prepare a gift for Tom. She had brought a few items with her from her house that she thought Tom might like.
She loved watching the Quidditch games when she was in Australia since they had wide fields and she even got to go to the semi-finals for the Quidditch World Cup, but it was the off years. The next Cup would be held in 1932. Her grandpa had given her the Australian version of the golden snitch.
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The Australian snitch had straighter wings that matched the flukes of a mermaid or sea serpent. The British snitch resembled bird wings since they usually used owls. Sophie was happy when she opened the box and saw the snitch still there. She tapped it and the snitch opened and the wings began to flutter. It slowly flew up and buzzed around the room before landing softly back in the box.
She smiled and then tied a ribbon around the box before falling asleep. She didn't dream of anything in particular, but she knew it was a happy dream when she woke up the next day: Tom's birthday. She happily got up early when the bell rang for breakfast and rushed down to grab a hot meal for both of them, after telling Ms. Cole of course. Sophie then sat down in the area that was in the sun instead of sitting in the cold corner.
Tom walked down the stairs rather groggily and rubbed his eyes as a few of the older kids pushed their way by him. He was already off to a bad start for his birthday and didn't expect it to get any better. That is until he saw Sophie waving at him with her legs dangling from the tall seats at the table. She was smiling very brightly at him and was glad he was there early so his food was still warm. He walked over and hopped on to the opposite side of Sophie, sitting across from her.
"Happy Birthday, Tom," Sophie said as she scooted his tray towards him. She gave him an extra piece of bread that she snuck and made sure it didn't touch the beans. She didn't want the bread to get soggy. Tom couldn't believe someone this nice existed in the world.
"Thank you, Sophie," was all Tom was able to say before eating. He felt a strange emotion in his chest and he didn't want to look weak in front of her; his soul was gently touched by her actions. The two were the first pair to finish eating so they cleaned their trays and ran back upstairs as fast as they could.
Sophie then began to speak, "Tom, I have a present for you," she said with a smile, "Wait in your room." Sophie ran to her room as Tom walked into his; still having that half-smile on his face. Sophie examined the box, making sure nothing happened to it, before entering Tom's room.
