The Other Potter Book Two

Chapter Twenty Eight: Tears All 'Round

"Willow, I can feel your thoughts." Harry said in my head.

"I can sense yours." I said feeling ridiculously confused.

We waited for Riddle to stop laughing and together built up courage.

"To business, Harry," said Riddle, still smiling broadly. "Twice - in your past, in my future - we have met. And twice I failed to kill you. How did you survive? Tell me everything. The longer you talk," he added softly, "the longer you stay alive."  

"No one knows why you lost your powers when you attacked me," said Harry abruptly. "I don't know myself but I know why you couldn't kill me. Because my mother died to save me. My common Muggle-born mother," he added, shaking with suppressed rage. "She stopped you killing me. And I've seen the real you, I saw you last year. You're a wreck. You're barely alive. That's where all your power got you. You're in hiding. You're ugly, you're foul -"

Riddle's face contorted. Then he smiled. "So, your mother died to save you. Yes, that's a powerful countercharm. I can see now ... there is nothing special about you, after all. I wondered, you see. There are strange likenesses between us, after all."

"Harry, ignore what he says, he's trying to provoke you." I shot into his mind.

"Even you must have noticed. Both half-bloods, orphans, raised by Muggles. Probably the only two Parselmouths to come to Hogwarts since the great Slytherin himself. We look something alike ... but after all, it was merely a lucky chance that saved you from me. That's all I wanted to know."

"You're wrong," I said in a calm voice. Dunno where it came from...

"Am I?" Riddle spat looking me up and down.

"You are." I said in Parselmouth. This was weird, I have no idea what I'm doing. "You're going to die today."

"Really?" said riddle, halfway through amusement and fear.

"Even you have to be scared, Riddle." I said forcefully. "I looked the basilisk in the eye, and here I stand today. Stronger than you will ever be." I paused, "Plus, I can speak Parseltongue too you giant douche."

“Have you ever wondered why that is?” Riddle asked me.

“No, not really. I don’t care that much.”

“What about your past? Why did the sweet, golden child of the Malfoy’s suddenly receive such hatred from her father?”

“He’s provoking you, don’t listen.” Both Harry and Lucy said in my mind.

But I was so intrigued.

“Your pitiful father was once a great servant of mine – he had a son, and a daughter. Loved you equally, until he discovered my diary. I told him what you really were, and that he had to kill you. But he couldn’t even do that right –“

My heart was racing, my mind spinning. Voldemort. It was Voldemort who made my parents hate me. What did he mean ‘what I really was?’ What?

“I love story time with Tom.” I told him flatly. “We should do this more often.”

“You are so ignorant.”

“You are so going to die today.”

His face contorted into rage. "I'm going to teach you two a little lesson. Let's match the powers of Lord Voldemort, Heir of Salazar Slytherin, against famous Harry Potter, his stupid friend and the best weapons Dumbledore can give them ..." He cast an amused eye over Fawkes and the Sorting Hat, then walked away.

"Harry, we're going to win." I said in him mind. We gripped each other's wrists in a fear-free way, we were going to win, or die trying.

Personally, with my record of surviving death, I had some hope.