A Deeper Connection: A New Beginning

A Deeper Connection - Part II

"Thank you, sir," Tom relied, trying his best to be as polite as possible, clutching the returned wand to his chest. Internally, it was a different story altogether as he was celebrating yet another defeat of the old coot. The sentiment was clearly shared by his equal given the fragments of amusement the Dark lord was sensing through the weakened link.

"Does that mean that Thomas can start second year with me?" Harry asked, sounding enthusiastic and hopeful at the same time as he looked at the Headmaster.

"My boy, Thomas here having a functioning wand says very little about his skills," Dumbledore explained, "in order to determine which year he will be placed in, we need to properly evaluate Thomas' theoretical knowledge as well as his practical performance, preferably as quickly as possible. Severus, would you mind taking Thomas to Hogwarts next Monday?"

"Are you sure that all teachers will be available by then?" the Potions Master asked, a hint of sarcasm and doubt tainting his voice, "furthermore, it is a rather short span of time to properly prepare an examination."

"Since Thomas is still at the beginning of his education," Dumbledore replied, his twinkle rather pronounced, "it should be a rather straightforward affair. Therefore, I see no reason why a few days should not be enough."

"What about Defence?" Severus asked, his arms locked in front of his chest, "have you already managed to find a new teacher?"

"Not yet, but I am very close," the Headmaster replied swiftly, never once losing his smile, "be assured that I will find a solution to examine Thomas' Defence Against the Dark Arts skills. Severus, would next Monday suit your schedule?"

"Albus, this is not about me," the Potions Master's familiar drawl echoed through the small living room at Spinner's End, "if my ward believes he is prepared to be examined, I am fine with Monday. Still, should more time be required, the examination will wait. Since all of our students get plenty of time to study, Thomas should receive the same possibilities."

Cracking under the intense gaze of the Headmaster, Tom eventually stuttered, "Mo... Monday i... is fine... fo... for me."

"Splendid," Dumbledore replied, stepping forward to pat the shoulder of the Dark Lord reassuringly before excusing himself. Once the old coot had left and a series of Privacy Charms had been cast on the fireplace, all of Severus' masks dropped as he stared at his two wards who were still sitting on the floor, a look of disbelief on his face, "How did you know that he would invite you to Hogwarts so soon?"

"Maybe we have stolen too much of his lemon drops and now think like he does," Harry chuckled while Tom simply enjoyed the expression of the Potions Master as long as he could.

As promised, they visited Diagon Alley the next day. Thanks to Severus' increasingly foul mood given the rather crowded streets, most Witches and Wizards thankfully did not bother them too much while buying the necessities for Thomas, mostly clothes and some of the basics needed for Hogwarts regardless of the academic year.

Under normal circumstances, Tom would have preferred to avoid Madam Malkin's in favour of the superior quality of Gladrags. Since he had a cover to keep, he resisted his temptation and endured the intrusive service of Madam Malkin. The possessiveness in Harry's eyes whenever the Witch nearly poked him with a needle certainly made up for it. Once the selection of standard robes had been finished, Tom followed Severus and Harry to buy a new, although fairly standard trunk, Potions equipment, a telescope, a wand holster, parchment, quills, and ink. Lastly, they visited Gladrags to get some proper boots for the Dark Lord. Since Severus got all of his footwear from there as well, nobody would question the purchase. For the remainder of Tom's wardrobe, they headed to Muggle London. It would be rather amusing to run around Hogwarts with Muggle clothes right under Dumbledore's overlong and overly curious nose. Also, the Dark Lord would much rather wear a Muggle jumper than the itchy equivalent of Madam Malkin's. He still had no idea why that store was still in business.